Historical on-time performance
Chicago to New Orleans
825 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on MDW–MSY arrive on time 73% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate73%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay45 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled1.0%of scheduled flights
based on 1,022 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- Southwest AirlinesOn-time73%Medianon timep9045 minCancel1.0%Flights1,022
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline35%
- Weather1%
- Air traffic (NAS)11%
- Late aircraft52%
- Security1%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Late aircraft.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline0%
- Weather80%
- Air traffic (NAS)20%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 10 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly MDW → MSY
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-06 .. 2026-05).
Best time of day
Mornings are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 88% on time.
- Mornings88% on time · p90 15 min · 1,063 flights
- Middays83% on time · p90 30 min · 355 flights
- Evenings76% on time · p90 35 min · 274 flights
- Afternoons70% on time · p90 40 min · 560 flights
- Overnights63% on time · p90 70 min · 797 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 72% to 83% on time.
- Tuesdays83% on time · p90 25 min · 394 flights
- Wednesdays81% on time · p90 30 min · 392 flights
- Saturdays80% on time · p90 30 min · 391 flights
- Mondays77% on time · p90 40 min · 437 flights
- Thursdays73% on time · p90 40 min · 436 flights
- Sundays73% on time · p90 55 min · 549 flights
- Fridays72% on time · p90 35 min · 450 flights
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