Chicago to Tulsa

What the Data Says About ORD to TUL

The Chicago to Tulsa corridor (ORD → TUL) covers roughly 585 miles and is served by 23 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 8,129 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 78.6% on-time rate with an average delay of 73.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 3,515 flights were recorded on this pairing — 43 cancelled (1.2%) and 8 diverted (0.2%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 23 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 8,129 total flights analyzed, the 78.6% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 73.3-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, Oct 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 96% on-time, while May 2024 came in at 58% on-time — a 38-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ORD to TUL route, the combination of a 78.6% on-time rate, 73.3-minute average delay, 1.2% recent cancellation rate, and 23 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.