Chicago to Tucson

What the Data Says About ORD to TUS

The Chicago to Tucson corridor (ORD → TUS) covers roughly 1,437 miles and is served by 26 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 5,014 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 78.9% on-time rate with an average delay of 68.1 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,117 flights were recorded on this pairing — 17 cancelled (0.8%) and 3 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 26 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 5,014 total flights analyzed, the 78.9% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 68.1-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 90% on-time, while Jul 2025 came in at 59% on-time — a 31-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ORD to TUS route, the combination of a 78.9% on-time rate, 68.1-minute average delay, 0.8% recent cancellation rate, and 26 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.