The final figures are yet to be published, but it looks like Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport will end 2021 with the best on-time-departure performance among the region’s three commercial airports.
Through Nov. 30, Reagan National had posted an on-time rate of 84.92 percent, according to figures reported by the federal Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Washington Dulles International Airport’s on-time-departure rate for the first 11 months of 2021 stood at 83 percent, while BWI trailed at 69.5 percent.
Among the 30 busiest airports in the nation, Reagan National ranked 12th in on-time performance, Dulles 15th and BWI 29th.
Honolulu’s airport holds the crown as best place among major airports to depart from, with an on-time rate of 90.38 percent for the first 11 months of 2021. It was followed by Minneapolis-St. Paul (89.27 percent); Detroit (87.6 percent); Portland, Ore. (86.87 percent); and San Francisco (86.85 percent).
At rock bottom was Chicago-Midway, with an on-time performance of 67.51 percent for the 11 months, followed by BWI; Denver (75.19 percent), Dallas-Fort Worth (75.73 percent); and Las Vegas (76.3 percent).
By federal standards, flights are considered as “on time” if departing within 15 minutes of schedule.
Going back to 2020, a year upended by the COVID crisis, Dulles had led local airports with an on-time-departure rate of 85.83 percent (12th among the 30 biggest airports), followed by BWI at 84.06 percent (21st) and Reagan National at 83.36 percent (25th).