New Orleans to Denver

What the Data Says About MSY to DEN

The New Orleans to Denver corridor (MSY → DEN) covers roughly 1,062 miles and is served by 18 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 12,598 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 81.8% on-time rate with an average delay of 66.0 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 4,611 flights were recorded on this pairing — 67 cancelled (1.5%) and 10 diverted (0.2%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 18 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 12,598 total flights analyzed, the 81.8% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 66.0-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, Nov 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 91% on-time, while May 2024 came in at 65% on-time — a 26-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the MSY to DEN route, the combination of a 81.8% on-time rate, 66.0-minute average delay, 1.5% recent cancellation rate, and 18 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.