Detroit to Albany

What the Data Says About DTW to ALB

The Detroit to Albany corridor (DTW → ALB) covers roughly 489 miles and is served by 14 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 7,191 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 84.1% on-time rate with an average delay of 77.7 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,427 flights were recorded on this pairing — 15 cancelled (0.6%) and 7 diverted (0.3%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 14 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 7,191 total flights analyzed, the 84.1% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 77.7-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, May 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 92% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 59% on-time — a 34-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the DTW to ALB route, the combination of a 84.1% on-time rate, 77.7-minute average delay, 0.6% recent cancellation rate, and 14 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.