RDU to BUF flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Raleigh-Durham International Airport to Buffalo Niagara International Airport · 487 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at RDU or BUF right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to Buffalo (BUF) arrived on time 71% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 0.9% were cancelled, and 15% arrived an hour or more late.
- Frontier Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 7pm did best (81% on time); around 6pm did worst (56%).
- Thursday was the most reliable day to fly (85% on time) and Tuesday the least (30%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (71%).
Which airline is most on time from RDU to BUF?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier Airlines | 71% | 0.9% | 23 min | 15.2% | 106 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5pm61%18 flights
- 6pm56%39 flights
- 7pm81%17 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday88%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday30%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday100%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday85%0.0% cancelled
- Friday100%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday69%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday63%2.8% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft71%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion16%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)13%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather100%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)0%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
RDU to BUF: common questions
- How often are RDU to BUF flights on time?
- 71% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Raleigh/Durham to Buffalo cancelled?
- 0.9% of scheduled flights were cancelled (1 of 106).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 23 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 79 min behind schedule on average, and 15.2% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at RDU?
- Flights on this route spent 17 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: BUF to RDU — 68% on time
More flights from Raleigh/Durham
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: RDU → BUF, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.