Route reliability

Orlando (MCO) to Nashville (BNA): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Orlando, FL (MCO) to Nashville, TN (BNA), September 2025 to August 2026.

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

Orlando, FLNashville, TN

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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

MCO to BNA

Orlando, FL to Nashville, TN

On time
71.7%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
1.9%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
60+ min late
7.9%vs 8.1% U.S. average About average
Scheduled flights
3,550in 12 months4 airlines
Most reliable airline
Southwest Airlines72.2% on time · 2,715 flights

On time less often than the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.

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 MCO to BNA, 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. Frontier Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) 72.9% 0.4% 11.4% 77 min 0.0% 229
2. Southwest Airlines Most reliable 72.2% 1.2% 7.4% 55 min 0.1% 2,715
3. Spirit Airlines 68.8% 5.7% 9.0% 69 min 0.0% 577
Republic Airways Operating carrier; sold as American Eagle, Delta Connection, United Express Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) 29

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

Southwest Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Southwest Airlines had the best on-time record from Orlando (MCO) to Nashville (BNA): 72.2% of its 2,715 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 68.8% for Spirit Airlines.
  • Frontier Airlines (72.9% on 229 flights) scored higher but flew the route far less often, so that result is less certain.
  • Republic Airways also flew this route but with fewer than 50 reported flights, too few to rate.
  • 1.9% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 53), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 7.9% of flights, about 1 in 13, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 59 min.
  • Overall, 71.7% of flights on this route arrived on time, 3.9 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, November was the most reliable month on this route (82.6% on time) and July the least reliable (67.1%).
  • Cancellations peaked in January, when 4.6% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 6 am to 7 am were the most punctual (97.4% on time); flights scheduled to depart 7 pm to 8 pm were the least (53.8%).
  • In the other direction, Nashville (BNA) to Orlando (MCO), 72.2% of flights were on time and 1.6% were cancelled. Compare airlines BNA to MCO.

Best and worst months to fly MCO to BNA

Jan 74.8%
Feb 77.1%
Mar 70.5%
Apr 80.7%
May 69.0%
Jun 68.1%
Jul 67.1%
Aug 69.2%
Sep 82.2%
Oct 76.3%
Nov 82.6%
Dec 75.2%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 71.7%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 74.8% 769
February 77.1% 746
March 70.5% 903
April 80.7% 796
May 69.0% 815
June 68.1% 839
July 67.1% 846
August 69.2% 776
September 82.2% 646
October 76.3% 868
November 82.6% 815
December 75.2% 824
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Southwest Airlines November (84.3%) July (65.2%)
Spirit Airlines November (79.3%) May (67.9%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 83.8%
Oct 71.4%
Nov 78.1%
Dec 69.7%
Jan 73.7%
Feb 71.2%
Mar 67.7%
Apr 80.3%
May 75.1%
Jun 64.3%
Jul 62.9%
Aug 64.9%
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 83.8% 265
Oct 2025 71.4% 325
Nov 2025 78.1% 288
Dec 2025 69.7% 294
Jan 2026 73.7% 289
Feb 2026 71.2% 292
Mar 2026 67.7% 328
Apr 2026 80.3% 299
May 2026 75.1% 261
Jun 2026 64.3% 286
Jul 2026 62.9% 315
Aug 2026 64.9% 308

Best and worst departure times

6a 97.4%
7a 86.9%
8a 85.7%
9a 82.3%
10a 90.0%
11a 82.3%
12p 71.1%
1p 75.7%
2p 66.7%
3p 66.0%
4p 63.6%
5p 60.0%
6p 62.3%
7p 53.8%
8p 62.3%
9p 51.6%
10p 56.2%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at MCO, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 6 am to 7 am 97.4% 152
Departing 7 am to 8 am 86.9% 245
Departing 8 am to 9 am 85.7% 252
Departing 9 am to 10 am 82.3% 356
Departing 10 am to 11 am 90.0% 180
Departing 11 am to noon 82.3% 130
Departing noon to 1 pm 71.1% 201
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 75.7% 140
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 66.7% 201
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 66.0% 282
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 63.6% 206
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 60.0% 270
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 62.3% 297
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 53.8% 199
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 62.3% 154
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 51.6% 93
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 56.2% 192
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 Orlando, FL (MCO) to Nashville, TN (BNA), 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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