Key West to Chicago

What the Data Says About EYW to ORD

The Key West to Chicago corridor (EYW → ORD) covers roughly 1,251 miles and is served by 17 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 2,776 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 71.8% on-time rate with an average delay of 76.9 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,424 flights were recorded on this pairing — 26 cancelled (1.8%) and 19 diverted (1.3%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 17 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 2,776 total flights analyzed, the 71.8% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 76.9-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, Feb 2023 posted the best performance on this corridor at 83% on-time, while Feb 2022 came in at 42% on-time — a 42-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the EYW to ORD route, the combination of a 71.8% on-time rate, 76.9-minute average delay, 1.8% recent cancellation rate, and 17 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.