Richmond to Chicago

What the Data Says About RIC to ORD

The Richmond to Chicago corridor (RIC → ORD) covers roughly 642 miles and is served by 33 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 6,126 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 83% on-time rate with an average delay of 88.2 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,151 flights were recorded on this pairing — 47 cancelled (2.2%) and 8 diverted (0.4%). 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 6,126 total flights analyzed, the 83% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 88.2-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, Sep 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 98% on-time, while Jul 2025 came in at 66% on-time — a 32-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the RIC to ORD route, the combination of a 83% on-time rate, 88.2-minute average delay, 2.2% recent cancellation rate, and 33 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.