Chicago to Dallas

What the Data Says About MDW to DAL

The Chicago to Dallas corridor (MDW → DAL) covers roughly 793 miles and is served by 1 carrier, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 13,489 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 79.9% on-time rate with an average delay of 57.7 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 4,446 flights were recorded on this pairing — 70 cancelled (1.6%) and 21 diverted (0.5%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 1 carrier on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 13,489 total flights analyzed, the 79.9% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 57.7-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, Feb 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 90% on-time, while May 2024 came in at 63% on-time — a 27-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the MDW to DAL route, the combination of a 79.9% on-time rate, 57.7-minute average delay, 1.6% recent cancellation rate, and 1 available carrier is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.