According to a study of the U.S. Department of Transportation's most recent data on the most frequently delayed and diverted airline flights, Charleston's Yeager Airport ranked 10th in the nation as a destination airport and 19th in the nation among airports from which flights originated for the average number of weather delays experienced per year.
The study, commissioned by Stratos Jet Charters Inc., indicated that flights to Yeager from Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport were delayed an average of 139.64 times per a year due to weather, while flights from Yeager to Chicago's O'Hare International were delayed an average of 121.27 times per year.
Topping the weather-related delays list were flights from South Bend International Airport in Indiana to O'Hare International, delayed an average of 186.85 times per year.
The study ranked West Virginia second in the nation among states with the longest weather-related delays for commercial airline flights, with an average of 79.81 minutes per delay, behind Maine with delays of 84.78 minutes, and ahead of third-place Idaho with delays averaging 74.60 minutes.
Conversely, West Virginia was one of seven states experiencing virtually no delays due to security issues, according to the study. States with the longest security delays were Idaho, Louisiana, Indiana, New Jersey and New York.
States with the longest flight delays caused by late aircraft - flights that depart at least 15 minutes later than scheduled departure times - were New York, with an average late flight delay of 53.58 minutes, followed by Vermont, Iowa, Wyoming and New Jersey.
The study, available for review at www.stratosjets.com/why-was-your-flight-delayed/, involved an analysis of statistics associated with more than 3.9 million delayed flights from January through September of 2015, using data from the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Reach Rick Steelhammer at rsteelhammer@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-5169, or follow @rsteelhammer on Twitter.