Southwest Airlines has an overall on-time arrival rate of 79%. The most common passenger complaint is baggage. Southwest Airlines ranks #7 out of 14 U.S. airlines for reliability.
Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated October 2026.WN
Southwest Airlines
Lands on time
79%
When late
~53 min
Cancelled
0.8%
Flights tracked
4,982,416
Southwest Airlines is middle of the pack — not bad, but delays happen. About 79% of their flights land on time. When they don't, you're usually waiting around 53 minutes. The biggest reason? late_aircraft.
About 1.5 out of every 100k passengers file a formal complaint. The thing people complain about most: baggage.
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Busiest Southwest Airlines routes
PHX → DENPhoenix – Denver
78%on time
DEN → PHXDenver – Phoenix
74%on time
DAL → HOUDallas – Houston
78%on time
HOU → DALHouston – Dallas
82%on time
SAN → SMFSan Diego – Sacramento
79%on time
LAS → SANLas Vegas – San Diego
68%on time
SMF → SANSacramento – San Diego
77%on time
SJC → SANSan Jose – San Diego
77%on time
SAN → LASSan Diego – Las Vegas
76%on time
SAN → SJCSan Diego – San Jose
78%on time
Data last updated October 2026. Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics.