Madison to Detroit

What the Data Says About MSN to DTW

The Madison to Detroit corridor (MSN → DTW) covers roughly 311 miles and is served by 19 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 7,461 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 88.8% on-time rate with an average delay of 98.1 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,465 flights were recorded on this pairing — 11 cancelled (0.4%) and 3 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 19 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 7,461 total flights analyzed, the 88.8% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 98.1-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 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 94% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 63% on-time — a 31-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the MSN to DTW route, the combination of a 88.8% on-time rate, 98.1-minute average delay, 0.4% recent cancellation rate, and 19 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.