Historical on-time performance
San Francisco to Detroit
Flights on SFO–DTW arrive on time 79% of the time over the last 12 months.
based on 1,774 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
Too close to call — no single carrier is clearly more on-time here.
- United AirlinesOn-time81%Medianon timep9025 minCancel0.8%Flights386
- Delta Air LinesOn-time79%Medianon timep9035 minCancel1.0%Flights1,388
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline34%
- Weather1%
- Air traffic (NAS)16%
- Late aircraft50%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Late aircraft.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline82%
- Weather12%
- Air traffic (NAS)6%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Airline. Shares are among 17 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 SFO → DTW
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 — 91% on time.
- Mornings91% on time · p90 10 min · 1,322 flights
- Overnights79% on time · p90 35 min · 1,293 flights
- Middays78% on time · p90 40 min · 1,561 flights
- Afternoons78% on time · p90 35 min · 776 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 77% to 87% on time.
- Tuesdays87% on time · p90 20 min · 665 flights
- Saturdays86% on time · p90 15 min · 634 flights
- Wednesdays84% on time · p90 20 min · 677 flights
- Thursdays81% on time · p90 30 min · 748 flights
- Fridays81% on time · p90 35 min · 739 flights
- Mondays79% on time · p90 35 min · 737 flights
- Sundays77% on time · p90 45 min · 752 flights
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