79% of flights leaving Bozeman (BZN) arrived on time over the past 12 months, 4 points better than the national average of 76%. About 36 flights leave BZN on a typical day; 0.9% were cancelled. 79% pushed back from the gate on time, so most of the lateness is already there when the flight leaves the gate.
At a glance
- Best hour to fly: 6 a.m. (93% on time). Worst: 5 p.m. (66%).
- Best month: November (87%). Worst: July (71%).
- Most reliable airline here: Delta Air Lines (87%), vs American Airlines at 71%.
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (35% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: improving (78% → 79%).
How late?
The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for flights leaving BZN: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 52% of the time. About 1 in 14 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 62 three hours or more; 0.9% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early79%
- 15–30 min late6.7%
- 30–60 min late5.7%
- 1–2 hours late4.0%
- 2–3 hours late1.5%
- 3+ hours late1.6%
- Diverted0.3%
- Cancelled0.9%
Share of all 13,034 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of BZN
Time of day matters more at BZN than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 6 a.m. arrived on time 93% of the time; at 5 p.m. it was 66%, a 28-point gap. Taken together, early departures (5–9 a.m.) ran 91% on time against 71% for the evening bank (5–10 p.m.). Early planes usually start the day at the airport, so they haven't had a chance to pick up delays elsewhere. By evening a late inbound aircraft, a crew running out of duty hours or an afternoon thunderstorm can push one late flight into the next. Cancellations cluster too: 5 p.m. departures were cancelled 1.5% of the time, against 0.9% overall.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at BZN was a 5 a.m. departure in May (98% on time); the least, 2 p.m. in July (57%). If you can only move one thing, move the hour. Departure hour usually shifts the odds more than the month does.
Each cell: on-time rate for that departure hour in that calendar month, 2023–2026. Find your travel month, then look along the row for the greenest hour.
Best and worst months
July is the hardest month at BZN, with 71% of flights on time across 2023–2026; November is the best at 87%. Summer (June–August) runs 12 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 9 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in January (2.2% of flights).
Airlines at BZN
United Airlines runs 27% of departures from BZN. Among airlines with at least 1,000 departures here, Delta Air Lines was the most reliable (87% on time) and American Airlines the least (71%), a 17-point difference. On a route where both fly, that difference is worth more than a small fare gap.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 3,580 | 78% | 79% | 0.8% | −9 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 3,429 | 87% | 88% | 0.7% | −12 min |
| Alaska Airlines | 2,147 | 79% | 81% | 1.3% | −7 min |
| Southwest Airlines | 1,915 | 76% | 72% | 0.2% | −3 min |
| American Airlines | 1,388 | 71% | 70% | 1.4% | −5 min |
| Allegiant Air | 340 | 79% | 80% | 0.6% | −9 min |
| JetBlue | 235 | 60% | 51% | 5.5% | −1 min |
Why flights are late at BZN
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At BZN, 35% of delay minutes came from late-arriving aircraft: the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Next is the air traffic system at 29%. That's why the first flight of the morning is the safest bet: it has no earlier flight to inherit a delay from. Of the 116 cancellations, 51% were blamed on weather.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 18 minutes, about typical for a large U.S. airport.
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 79% of BZN departures were on time, against 78% in the 12 months before, an improvement of 1 points. The best recent month was October 2025 (87%); the worst, August 2026 (70%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Sunday, Jan 25, 2026, when 15% of 34 scheduled departures were cancelled. Days like that are usually a major storm, a system outage or a holiday peak hitting bad weather. No average predicts them, so on a stormy forecast, check your airline's travel waivers.
| Date | Departures | Cancelled | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 25, 2026 | 34 | 15% | 56% |
| Dec 17, 2025 | 25 | 12% | 80% |
| Nov 8, 2025 | 25 | 12% | 76% |
| Nov 13, 2025 | 26 | 12% | 85% |
| Feb 23, 2026 | 36 | 8% | 83% |
| Mar 13, 2026 | 37 | 8% | 62% |
| Nov 11, 2025 | 25 | 8% | 88% |
| Nov 14, 2025 | 26 | 8% | 92% |
| Dec 19, 2025 | 39 | 8% | 33% |
| Dec 8, 2025 | 26 | 8% | 81% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from BZN, each airline's final departure was cancelled 0.8% of the time, against 0.7% for its earlier flights, about the same. 1.9% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was United Airlines to Newark (1.8% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EWR Newark | United Airlines | 1:10 p.m. | 1.8% | 4.6% | 64% |
| DFW Dallas | American Airlines | 4:15 p.m. | 2.5% | 2.9% | 71% |
| ORD Chicago | American Airlines | 5:00 p.m. | 1.4% | 3.8% | 66% |
| ORD Chicago | United Airlines | 4:24 p.m. | 1.1% | 3.4% | 71% |
| LAS Las Vegas | Southwest Airlines | 7:00 p.m. | 0.0% | 4.2% | 64% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | Delta Air Lines | 7:30 p.m. | 0.8% | 1.9% | 85% |
| DEN Denver | Southwest Airlines | 4:08 p.m. | 0.5% | 2.2% | 60% |
| SEA Seattle | Delta Air Lines | 3:54 p.m. | 0.3% | 1.1% | 85% |
| MSP Minneapolis | Delta Air Lines | 3:53 p.m. | 0.3% | 0.9% | 87% |
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 5:33 p.m. | 0.3% | 0.8% | 71% |
| SEA Seattle | Alaska Airlines | 6:58 p.m. | 1.1% | 0.0% | 73% |
Each airline's last scheduled departure of the day on a route, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Riskiest first.
Tips for flying out of BZN
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At BZN the 6 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in July? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Choosing between airlines? Delta Air Lines has the better record here.
- Delayed already? Most delays at BZN come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from BZN
Where you're going matters too. From BZN, the most reliable busy route was to Salt Lake City (SLC, 89% on time) and the least reliable to Chicago (ORD, 72%). Flights into congested airports inherit their delays: an air traffic program at the destination holds planes on the ground here.
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SFO San Francisco | 458 | 60% | 0.9% | +1 min |
| EWR Newark | 375 | 71% | 2.4% | −9 min |
| ORD Chicago | 1,251 | 72% | 0.9% | −5 min |
| DFW Dallas | 710 | 75% | 2.0% | −8 min |
| DEN Denver | 2,704 | 77% | 0.4% | −7 min |
| LAS Las Vegas | 599 | 82% | 0.3% | −9 min |
| PDX Portland | 434 | 82% | 1.6% | −7 min |
| SEA Seattle | 2,074 | 84% | 0.7% | −7 min |
| ATL Atlanta | 437 | 85% | 1.4% | −19 min |
| LAX Los Angeles | 527 | 89% | 0.0% | −13 min |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 1,160 | 89% | 0.5% | −11 min |
| MSP Minneapolis | 807 | 91% | 0.7% | −14 min |
Flights into BZN
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Bozeman Yellowstone, least reliable first. The weakest is from San Francisco (65% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| SFO San Francisco | 458 | 65% | 0.7% |
| ORD Chicago | 1,252 | 67% | 0.6% |
| DFW Dallas | 709 | 70% | 1.8% |
| LAS Las Vegas | 600 | 76% | 0.3% |
| EWR Newark | 375 | 77% | 2.4% |
| DEN Denver | 2,703 | 78% | 0.3% |
| MSP Minneapolis | 807 | 79% | 0.6% |
| ATL Atlanta | 437 | 80% | 1.4% |
| SEA Seattle | 2,074 | 84% | 0.6% |
| SLC Salt Lake City | 1,160 | 88% | 0.5% |
| PDX Portland | 432 | 89% | 0.0% |
| LAX Los Angeles | 526 | 89% | 0.0% |
Questions about BZN delays
What is the best time to fly out of BZN?
Flights scheduled at 6 a.m.: over the past year 93% of BZN departures at that hour arrived on time, against 66% at 5 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at BZN?
July (71% on time). November is the best month (87%).
Which airline is most on time at BZN?
Delta Air Lines: 87% of its BZN departures arrived on time over the past year. American Airlines had the weakest record at 71%.
Why are flights delayed at BZN?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (35% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the air traffic system (29%).
How often are flights cancelled at BZN?
0.9% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 2.2%.
Hours are scheduled local departure times. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes late at the destination; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Method.