Route Reliability

Route reliability

Atlanta (ATL) to Columbus (CMH): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Atlanta, GA (ATL) to Columbus, OH (CMH), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Atlanta, GAColumbus, OH

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

ATL to CMH

Atlanta, GA to Columbus, OH

On time
78.7%vs 75.6% U.S. average Better than average
Cancelled
1.4%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
5.7%vs 8.1% U.S. average Better than average
Scheduled flights
3,130in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
Delta Air Lines80.3% on time · 2,679 flights

On time more often than the U.S. average, with fewer cancellations.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from ATL to CMH, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. Delta Air Lines Most reliable 80.3% 1.4% 5.2% 56 min 0.2% 2,679
2. Southwest Airlines 75.1% 0.6% 5.8% 52 min 0.3% 309
3. Frontier Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) 56.3% 3.5% 13.4% 64 min 0.0% 142

On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.

What this means

Delta Air Lines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Delta Air Lines had the best on-time record from Atlanta (ATL) to Columbus (CMH): 80.3% of its 2,679 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 75.1% for Southwest Airlines.
  • 1.4% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 71), 0.5 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 5.7% of flights, about 1 in 18, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 56 min.
  • Overall, 78.7% of flights on this route arrived on time, 3.1 points higher than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, October was the most reliable month on this route (89.6% on time) and July the least reliable (66.4%).
  • Cancellations peaked in January, when 2.9% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 11 am to noon were the most punctual (92.2% on time); flights scheduled to depart 5 pm to 6 pm were the least (67.4%).
  • In the other direction, Columbus (CMH) to Atlanta (ATL), 83.3% of flights were on time and 1.4% were cancelled. Compare airlines CMH to ATL.

Best and worst months to fly ATL to CMH

Jan 77.1%
Feb 81.7%
Mar 82.6%
Apr 83.1%
May 76.1%
Jun 77.8%
Jul 66.4%
Aug 79.6%
Sep 85.1%
Oct 89.6%
Nov 88.4%
Dec 82.0%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 78.7%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 77.1% 717
February 81.7% 655
March 82.6% 737
April 83.1% 769
May 76.1% 833
June 77.8% 851
July 66.4% 870
August 79.6% 844
September 85.1% 803
October 89.6% 839
November 88.4% 765
December 82.0% 776
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Delta Air Lines October (90.6%) July (67.2%)
Southwest Airlines October (88.1%) July (63.5%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 84.5%
Oct 85.0%
Nov 83.4%
Dec 72.4%
Jan 77.4%
Feb 79.7%
Mar 73.4%
Apr 84.7%
May 80.0%
Jun 81.1%
Jul 66.3%
Aug 77.0%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 84.5% 277
Oct 2025 85.0% 294
Nov 2025 83.4% 253
Dec 2025 72.4% 254
Jan 2026 77.4% 234
Feb 2026 79.7% 217
Mar 2026 73.4% 248
Apr 2026 84.7% 249
May 2026 80.0% 270
Jun 2026 81.1% 270
Jul 2026 66.3% 294
Aug 2026 77.0% 270

Best and worst departure times

7a 89.6%
8a 83.8%
9a 76.3%
10a 87.1%
11a 92.2%
12p 79.9%
1p 85.5%
2p 84.6%
3p 72.3%
4p 75.0%
5p 67.4%
6p 73.8%
7p 69.8%
8p 72.5%
9p 69.3%
10p 77.9%
11p 73.6%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at ATL, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 7 am to 8 am 89.6% 201
Departing 8 am to 9 am 83.8% 160
Departing 9 am to 10 am 76.3% 76
Departing 10 am to 11 am 87.1% 279
Departing 11 am to noon 92.2% 128
Departing noon to 1 pm 79.9% 149
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 85.5% 165
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 84.6% 292
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 72.3% 383
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 75.0% 212
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 67.4% 178
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 73.8% 122
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 69.8% 199
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 72.5% 149
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 69.3% 75
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 77.9% 290
Departing 11 pm to midnight 73.6% 72
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

Sources & data dates

Source
U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
Period
September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
Data through
August 2026
Processed
2026-11-03
Scope
Nonstop scheduled flights from Atlanta, GA (ATL) to Columbus, OH (CMH), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
Method
Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.

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