Harrisburg to Detroit

What the Data Says About MDT to DTW

The Harrisburg to Detroit corridor (MDT → DTW) covers roughly 371 miles and is served by 6 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 3,648 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 87.8% on-time rate with an average delay of 109.6 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,061 flights were recorded on this pairing — 7 cancelled (0.7%) and 1 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 6 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 3,648 total flights analyzed, the 87.8% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 109.6-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, Oct 2025 posted the best performance on this corridor at 94% on-time, while Dec 2024 came in at 74% on-time — a 20-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the MDT to DTW route, the combination of a 87.8% on-time rate, 109.6-minute average delay, 0.7% recent cancellation rate, and 6 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.