75% of flights leaving Hayden (HDN) arrived on time over the past 12 months, right at the national average of 76%. About 7 flights leave HDN on a typical day; 1.1% were cancelled. 73% 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: 7 a.m. (85% on time). Worst: 3 p.m. (68%).
- Best month: November (83%). Worst: February (67%).
- Biggest delay cause: late-arriving aircraft (48% of delay minutes).
- Year on year: improving (72% → 74%).
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 HDN: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 47% of the time. About 1 in 10 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 46 three hours or more; 1.1% were cancelled outright.
- On time or early75%
- 15–30 min late7.0%
- 30–60 min late6.6%
- 1–2 hours late5.5%
- 2–3 hours late2.6%
- 3+ hours late2.2%
- Diverted0.4%
- Cancelled1.1%
Share of all 2,490 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.
Best time of day to fly out of HDN
Time of day matters more at HDN than almost anything else you control. Flights scheduled to leave at 7 a.m. arrived on time 85% of the time; at 3 p.m. it was 68%, a 17-point gap. 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.
Hour × month
Combine the two and the spread is wider still. The most reliable combination at HDN was a 1 p.m. departure in April (88% on time); the least, 1 p.m. in February (61%). 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
February is the hardest month at HDN, with 67% of flights on time across 2023–2026; November is the best at 83%. Summer (June–August) runs 10 points worse than autumn: heavy schedules, peak loads and afternoon thunderstorms. Winter costs 12 points against autumn. Cancellations peak in January (2.4% of flights).
Airlines at HDN
United Airlines runs 59% of departures from HDN, so HDN is effectively its hub. When United Airlines has a bad day, so does the airport.
| Airline | Departures | On time | Left on time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 1,477 | 79% | 78% | 1.1% | −15 min |
| Southwest Airlines | 515 | 75% | 74% | 0.0% | −15 min |
| American Airlines | 190 | 59% | 52% | 1.6% | +5 min |
| Delta Air Lines | 138 | 68% | 62% | 3.6% | −8 min |
Why flights are late at HDN
Airlines report a cause for every flight that arrives 15 or more minutes late. At HDN, 48% 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 26%. That's why the first flight of the morning is the safest bet: it has no earlier flight to inherit a delay from.
The average taxi from gate to takeoff is 22 minutes, longer than at most large U.S. airports. Airlines pad schedules for it, but a long queue on a busy afternoon still eats into the buffer.
HDN vs nearby airports
| Airport | Distance | Departures | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HDN Yampa Valley | — | 2,490 | 75% | 1.1% |
| EGE Eagle | 60 mi | 3,958 | 71% | 1.8% |
Month by month
Over the latest 12 months 74% of HDN departures were on time, against 72% in the 12 months before, an improvement of 2 points. The best recent month was September 2025 (86%); the worst, February 2026 (61%).
Worst cancellation days
The worst single day in the past year was Sunday, Jan 25, 2026, when 27% of 15 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 | 15 | 27% | 13% |
| Dec 27, 2025 | 21 | 19% | 10% |
| Feb 17, 2026 | 13 | 15% | 38% |
| Mar 16, 2026 | 14 | 14% | 36% |
| Mar 15, 2026 | 17 | 12% | 18% |
| Feb 24, 2026 | 11 | 9% | 64% |
| Jan 28, 2026 | 12 | 8% | 92% |
| Jan 21, 2026 | 12 | 8% | 92% |
| Jan 18, 2026 | 13 | 8% | 85% |
| Dec 19, 2025 | 14 | 7% | 64% |
Last flights of the day
The last flight of the day is a different bet. Across routes from HDN, each airline's final departure was cancelled 0.9% of the time, against 0.5% for its earlier flights (1.6× as often). Late in the day crews run short on duty hours, aircraft arrive late from elsewhere, and with no later flight to fold passengers into, cancelling is easier for the airline. 2.1% of last flights landed 3+ hours late. The riskiest last flight out was United Airlines to Denver (1.1% cancelled).
| Last flight to | Airline | Leaves | Cancelled | 3h+ late | On time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | United Airlines | 3:20 p.m. | 1.1% | 1.7% | 76% |
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 HDN
- Book the earliest departure you can live with. At HDN the 7 a.m. flights do best.
- Traveling in February? Leave extra slack for anything that can't move: cruises, weddings, the last connection of the day.
- Need to arrive tonight? Don't book the last flight out of HDN; the one before it leaves you a backup.
- Delayed already? Most delays at HDN come from late-arriving aircraft. If your inbound plane is late, your flight will be too, whatever the board says.
Routes from HDN
Least reliable first. Routes with at least 365 flights a year.
| To | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Typical arrival |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | 1,433 | 80% | 0.6% | −15 min |
Flights into HDN
Arriving rather than leaving? These are the routes into Yampa Valley, least reliable first. The weakest is from Denver (72% on time).
| From | Flights | On time | Cancelled |
|---|---|---|---|
| DEN Denver | 1,434 | 72% | 0.5% |
Questions about HDN delays
What is the best time to fly out of HDN?
Flights scheduled at 7 a.m.: over the past year 85% of HDN departures at that hour arrived on time, against 68% at 3 p.m., the worst hour.
What month has the most flight delays at HDN?
February (67% on time). November is the best month (83%).
Why are flights delayed at HDN?
The biggest cause was late-arriving aircraft (48% of delay minutes): the plane showed up late from its previous flight, so the delay started somewhere else. Then the air traffic system (26%).
How often are flights cancelled at HDN?
1.1% of scheduled departures over the past 12 months, peaking in January at 2.4%.
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.