Chicago to Richmond

What the Data Says About ORD to RIC

The Chicago to Richmond corridor (ORD → RIC) covers roughly 642 miles and is served by 33 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 6,028 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 78.3% on-time rate with an average delay of 74.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,267 flights were recorded on this pairing — 39 cancelled (1.7%) and 3 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 33 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 6,028 total flights analyzed, the 78.3% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 74.3-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, Apr 2025 posted the best performance on this corridor at 85% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 52% on-time — a 33-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ORD to RIC route, the combination of a 78.3% on-time rate, 74.3-minute average delay, 1.7% recent cancellation rate, and 33 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.