Chicago to Manhattan/Ft. Riley

What the Data Says About ORD to MHK

The Chicago to Manhattan/Ft. Riley corridor (ORD → MHK) covers roughly 501 miles and is served by 4 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 2,008 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 81% on-time rate with an average delay of 76.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,312 flights were recorded on this pairing — 30 cancelled (2.3%) and 5 diverted (0.4%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 4 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 2,008 total flights analyzed, the 81% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 76.3-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, Jun 2022 posted the best performance on this corridor at 92% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 53% on-time — a 38-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ORD to MHK route, the combination of a 81% on-time rate, 76.3-minute average delay, 2.3% recent cancellation rate, and 4 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.