Knoxville to Chicago

What the Data Says About TYS to ORD

The Knoxville to Chicago corridor (TYS → ORD) covers roughly 475 miles and is served by 30 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 7,697 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 79.8% on-time rate with an average delay of 94.6 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 3,777 flights were recorded on this pairing — 73 cancelled (1.9%) and 14 diverted (0.4%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 30 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 7,697 total flights analyzed, the 79.8% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 94.6-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 92% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 48% on-time — a 44-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the TYS to ORD route, the combination of a 79.8% on-time rate, 94.6-minute average delay, 1.9% recent cancellation rate, and 30 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.