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Index Desk · Airport reliability

Las Vegas LAS: On-Time Departures

By The Sales Traveler Data Desk · · 3 min read

How reliable is Las Vegas's LAS for departures? The on-time and cancellation numbers it actually delivered last month, from U.S. government flight data.

Direct answer: In May 2026, 70.4% of flights departed Las Vegas's LAS on time (within 15 minutes of schedule) and 0.67% were cancelled, across 14,585 scheduled departures — ranking #26 of 30 major US airports on on-time departures. Computed by The Sales Traveler from U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics flight-level data. On-time departure rate is the number that decides whether a delay at LAS is a coincidence or a pattern.
Airport
Las Vegas (LAS)
Month
May 2026
On-time departures
70.4% (within 15 min)
Cancellation rate
0.67%
Rank (on-time dep.)
#26 of 30 major US airports
Scheduled departures
14,585

What LAS actually delivered

In May 2026, 70.4% of the 14,585 flights scheduled to depart Las Vegas's LAS pushed back within 15 minutes of schedule, and 0.67% were cancelled — putting LAS at the less reliable end of the major US airports that month (#26 of 30 major US airports). These figures are computed by The Sales Traveler from the raw U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics on-time dataset. On-time departure = flights that pushed back within 15 minutes of schedule (DepDel15=0), as a share of non-cancelled departures from the airport. Cancellation rate = cancelled flights divided by scheduled departures. Major US airports only (>=15,000 scheduled departures in the month). Computed by The Sales Traveler from the raw BTS on-time dataset for the month.

What that means for a business trip through LAS

Departing on time is the number that decides whether you make a connection or a same-day return. LAS's standing here is a reason to build in buffer: book the earliest viable departure, avoid tight connections, and don't schedule a hard stop right after you land. Departure reliability shifts month to month with weather and operations, so this updates as new DOT data publishes. For live conditions, see the flight-delay tracker.

Which airline you fly still matters

Airport reliability sets the baseline; the carrier you book moves it. The same departure bank can run smoothly for one airline and poorly for another. Cross-reference this with the airline reliability scorecards — on-time and cancellation rates for every major US carrier, computed from the same U.S. DOT record — before you book a schedule-critical trip through LAS.

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Delivered figures computed by The Sales Traveler from the U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance dataset for May 2026 (https://transtats.bts.gov/PREZIP/On_Time_Reporting_Carrier_On_Time_Performance_1987_present_2026_5.zip), aggregated by origin airport. Independent and reader-funded — a partnership buys reach, never a rating.
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