Charlotte to Detroit

What the Data Says About CLT to DTW

The Charlotte to Detroit corridor (CLT → DTW) covers roughly 500 miles and is served by 37 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 19,721 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 84.6% on-time rate with an average delay of 72.8 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 7,626 flights were recorded on this pairing — 63 cancelled (0.8%) and 11 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 37 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 19,721 total flights analyzed, the 84.6% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 72.8-minute average delay applies only to flights that actually ran late, so it is not the average wait across all departures — the majority of flights on this route depart on time under the BTS definition of a delay (15+ minutes past schedule).

Looking at recent months, Sep 2025 posted the best performance on this corridor at 89% on-time, while Jul 2024 came in at 67% on-time — a 22-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the CLT to DTW route, the combination of a 84.6% on-time rate, 72.8-minute average delay, 0.8% recent cancellation rate, and 37 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.