Historical on-time performance
Chicago to Washington
588 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on ORD–IAD arrive on time 72% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate72%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay60 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled0.6%of scheduled flights
based on 2,021 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- United AirlinesOn-time72%Medianon timep9060 minCancel0.6%Flights2,021
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline33%
- Weather6%
- Air traffic (NAS)24%
- Late aircraft36%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Late aircraft.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline8%
- Weather85%
- Air traffic (NAS)8%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 13 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 ORD → IAD
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 — 85% on time.
- Mornings85% on time · p90 25 min · 1,333 flights
- Middays80% on time · p90 25 min · 1,426 flights
- Overnights73% on time · p90 50 min · 906 flights
- Afternoons72% on time · p90 60 min · 720 flights
- Evenings64% on time · p90 80 min · 1,099 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 72% to 79% on time.
- Tuesdays79% on time · p90 40 min · 772 flights
- Saturdays78% on time · p90 40 min · 774 flights
- Wednesdays77% on time · p90 45 min · 782 flights
- Mondays75% on time · p90 50 min · 776 flights
- Thursdays75% on time · p90 45 min · 790 flights
- Fridays74% on time · p90 50 min · 786 flights
- Sundays72% on time · p90 60 min · 804 flights
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