Sarasota/Bradenton to Chicago

What the Data Says About SRQ to ORD

The Sarasota/Bradenton to Chicago corridor (SRQ → ORD) covers roughly 1,050 miles and is served by 42 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 4,623 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 77.6% on-time rate with an average delay of 94.5 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,665 flights were recorded on this pairing — 28 cancelled (1.7%) and 6 diverted (0.4%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 42 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 4,623 total flights analyzed, the 77.6% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 94.5-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, Feb 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 89% on-time, while Nov 2025 came in at 64% on-time — a 25-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the SRQ to ORD route, the combination of a 77.6% on-time rate, 94.5-minute average delay, 1.7% recent cancellation rate, and 42 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.