ON TIMEBOARD
SEA Seattle / TPA Tampa

SEA → TPA on time

Seattle-Tacoma (Seattle, WA) to Tampa (Tampa, FL). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
79%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.5%
975 flights
Typical arrival
−6 min
median vs schedule
When late
+52 min
average delay
Flights / day
3
2 airlines

79% of flights from Seattle to Tampa arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is about the typical U.S. route. The 9 p.m. departures ran on time 80% of the time; the 9 a.m. ones 74%. Most reliable airline: Alaska Airlines (80%). 6% of flights arrived more than an hour late or not at all.

How late?

The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for SEA → TPA: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 63% of the time. About 1 in 22 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 195 three hours or more; 0.5% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 975 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Alaska Airlines61280%0.5%−9 min3.6%+48 minAlaska Airlines
Delta Air Lines36377%0.5%−3 min6.3%+57 minDelta Air Lines

Airline = the name on the ticket. Regional flights (e.g. "Delta Connection") count under the ticketing airline, and the operator is listed.

Best time of day to fly

On-time rate by scheduled departure hour (local time at SEA). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%8 a.m. departures: too few flights (63 flights)8a9 a.m. departures: 74% on time (266 flights)749a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (36 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: 76% on time (306 flights)7611anoon departures: too few flights (56 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights1p2 p.m. departures: too few flights2p3 p.m. departures: too few flights3p4 p.m. departures: too few flights4p5 p.m. departures: too few flights5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights6p7 p.m. departures: too few flights7p8 p.m. departures: too few flights8p9 p.m. departures: 80% on time (197 flights)809p10 p.m. departures: too few flights (22 flights)10p11 p.m. departures: too few flights (29 flights)11p
SEA → TPA, share of flights arriving on time, by departure hour. Hours with under 100 flights are greyed out.
82%+ on time76–82%68–76%under 68%too few flights

By airline and hour

DepartsAlaska AirlinesDelta Air Lines
9 a.m.74%—
11 a.m.—76%
9 p.m.80%—

Last flight of the day

On SEA → TPA, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.0% of the time, against 0.8% for its earlier flights, so here the last flight is actually the safer one. It arrived 3+ hours late 0.0% of the time (earlier flights: 1.2%). It matters more than the numbers suggest. Miss an earlier flight and there's another one that evening; miss the last one and you're usually waiting until morning.

AirlineLast departureLast: cancelledLast: 3h+ lateEarlier: cancelledNext morning
Alaska Airlines9:18 p.m.0.0%0.0%0.8%first flight 9:21 a.m.

Last flight = the airline's last scheduled departure on this route that day, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Times are typical scheduled times over the latest three months.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: November (86%). Worst: July (59%).

40%70%100%Jan: 78% on time (251 flights)78JanFeb: 85% on time (240 flights)85FebMar: 77% on time (274 flights)77MarApr: 75% on time (264 flights)75AprMay: 80% on time (278 flights)80MayJun: 71% on time (270 flights)71JunJul: 59% on time (278 flights)59JulAug: 64% on time (263 flights)64AugSep: 80% on time (244 flights)80SepOct: 78% on time (216 flights)78OctNov: 86% on time (224 flights)86NovDec: 77% on time (269 flights)77Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday14779%0.0%
Tuesday13482%0.8%
Wednesday13381%0.0%
Thursday14279%0.0%
Friday14379%1.4%
Saturday13286%0.8%
Sunday14470%0.7%

Why flights were late

Share of delay minutes on flights 15+ minutes late, as reported to BTS by the airlines.

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 49%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 26%Late inbound plane 17%Severe weather 8%

Cancellations: airline 4 · weather 1

Month by month

Not enough months with data to draw a trend.

Flight numbers on this route

Regular flights with at least 120 scheduled trips in the past year. Sorted by departure time.

FlightDepartsFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrivalOperated by
AS 3269:11 a.m.29583%1.0%−14 minAlaska Airlines
DL 35811:55 a.m.36377%0.5%−3 minDelta Air Lines
AS 6399:18 p.m.22983%0.0%−7 minAlaska Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Jun 19, 202630%0
Jul 16, 202630%0
Jul 12, 202630%0
Aug 2, 202630%0
Apr 1, 202630%0

Questions

How often are flights from SEA to TPA on time?

79% of 975 scheduled flights from Seattle, WA to Tampa, FL arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.5% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly SEA to TPA?

Flights scheduled to leave at 9 p.m. were the most reliable (80% on time). The 9 a.m. departures were the least (74%).

Which airline is most on time from SEA to TPA?

Alaska Airlines: 80% of its 612 flights on the route arrived on time. Delta Air Lines: 77%.

What month has the most delays from SEA to TPA?

July (59% on time). The best month is November (86%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from SEA to TPA more likely to be cancelled?

No, the opposite. Each airline's last SEA–TPA flight of the day was cancelled 0.0% of the time over the past year, against 0.8% for its earlier flights. If the last flight is cancelled, the next one is usually the following morning.

Related

Domestic flights by the airlines that report to the U.S. DOT, plus their regional partners. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes after schedule; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Past performance is a guide, not a forecast. Method.