Tucson to Chicago

What the Data Says About TUS to ORD

The Tucson to Chicago corridor (TUS → ORD) covers roughly 1,437 miles and is served by 26 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 5,012 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 83.9% on-time rate with an average delay of 105.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,116 flights were recorded on this pairing — 22 cancelled (1.0%) and 12 diverted (0.6%). 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 5,012 total flights analyzed, the 83.9% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 105.3-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 94% on-time, while Sep 2025 came in at 68% on-time — a 26-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the TUS to ORD route, the combination of a 83.9% on-time rate, 105.3-minute average delay, 1.0% recent cancellation rate, and 26 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.