ON TIMEBOARD

GRR → DEN on time

Gerald R. Ford (Grand Rapids, MI) to Denver (Denver, CO). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
75%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.4%
1,234 flights
Typical arrival
−5 min
median vs schedule
When late
+75 min
average delay
Flights / day
3
3 airlines

75% of flights from Grand Rapids to Denver arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is worse than the typical U.S. route. The 8 a.m. departures ran on time 85% of the time; the 3 p.m. ones 71%. Most reliable airline: United Airlines (77%). 8% of flights arrived more than an hour late or not at all.

How late?

The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for GRR → DEN: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 58% of the time. About 1 in 14 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 51 three hours or more; 0.4% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 1,234 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
United Airlines72877%0.5%−5 min6.2%+81 minUnited Airlines 100%, SkyWest 0%
Southwest Airlines35972%0.3%−3 min7.2%+56 minSouthwest Airlines
Frontier Airlines14776%0.0%−12 min11.6%+107 minFrontier Airlines

Airline = the name on the ticket. Regional flights (e.g. "Delta Connection") count under the ticketing airline, and the operator is listed.

Best time of day to fly

On-time rate by scheduled departure hour (local time at GRR). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%5 a.m. departures: too few flights (41 flights)5a6 a.m. departures: too few flights (1 flights)6a7 a.m. departures: too few flights (13 flights)7a8 a.m. departures: 85% on time (266 flights)858a9 a.m. departures: 78% on time (207 flights)789a10 a.m. departures: too few flights (4 flights)10a11 a.m. departures: too few flights (8 flights)11anoon departures: too few flights (31 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights1p2 p.m. departures: too few flights (12 flights)2p3 p.m. departures: 71% on time (400 flights)713p4 p.m. departures: too few flights (61 flights)4p5 p.m. departures: too few flights (34 flights)5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights (14 flights)6p7 p.m. departures: too few flights (10 flights)7p8 p.m. departures: 76% on time (127 flights)768p
GRR → DEN, share of flights arriving on time, by departure hour. Hours with under 100 flights are greyed out.
82%+ on time76–82%68–76%under 68%too few flights

By airline and hour

DepartsUnited AirlinesSouthwest AirlinesFrontier Airlines
8 a.m.84%86%—
9 a.m.78%——
3 p.m.73%——
8 p.m.——76%

Last flight of the day

On GRR → DEN, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.3% of the time, against 0.8% for its earlier flights, so here the last flight is actually the safer one. It arrived 3+ hours late 3.1% of the time (earlier flights: 1.0%). It matters more than the numbers suggest. Miss an earlier flight and there's another one that evening; miss the last one and you're usually waiting until morning.

AirlineLast departureLast: cancelledLast: 3h+ lateEarlier: cancelledNext morning
United Airlines3:37 p.m.0.3%3.0%0.8%first flight 8:00 a.m.

Last flight = the airline's last scheduled departure on this route that day, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Times are typical scheduled times over the latest three months.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: October (90%). Worst: January (63%).

40%70%100%Jan: 63% on time (287 flights)63JanFeb: 79% on time (255 flights)79FebMar: 83% on time (271 flights)83MarApr: 80% on time (294 flights)80AprMay: 76% on time (326 flights)76MayJun: 73% on time (352 flights)73JunJul: 75% on time (359 flights)75JulAug: 76% on time (365 flights)76AugSep: 86% on time (356 flights)86SepOct: 90% on time (357 flights)90OctNov: 85% on time (318 flights)85NovDec: 79% on time (310 flights)79Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday18971%0.5%
Tuesday15379%0.0%
Wednesday15671%0.6%
Thursday17373%0.6%
Friday18679%0.0%
Saturday19377%1.0%
Sunday18476%0.0%

Why flights were late

Share of delay minutes on flights 15+ minutes late, as reported to BTS by the airlines.

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 34%Late inbound plane 30%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 30%Severe weather 6%

Cancellations: airline 2 · weather 2 · air traffic/airport 1

Month by month

50%75%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 85% on time, 0.8% cancelledOct 2023: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 92% on time, 0.9% cancelledMar 2024: 82% on time, 1.8% cancelledApr 2024: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 71% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2024: 74% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2024: 75% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2024: 80% on time, 0.8% cancelledSep 2024: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 92% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 78% on time, 0.9% cancelledDec 2024: 78% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 81% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2025: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2025: 80% on time, 1.6% cancelledAug 2025: 82% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2025: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2025: 67% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2026: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2026: 65% on time, 0.9% cancelledJul 2026: 71% on time, 0.9% cancelledAug 2026: 64% on time, 0.8% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
GRR → DEN, monthly on-time and cancellation rate.

Flight numbers on this route

Regular flights with at least 120 scheduled trips in the past year. Sorted by departure time.

FlightDepartsFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrivalOperated by
UA 26488:00 a.m.23477%1.3%−7 minUnited Airlines
UA 27453:37 p.m.17969%0.6%−1 minUnited Airlines
F9 12478:29 p.m.13078%0.0%−12 minFrontier Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Dec 19, 202540%0
Aug 15, 202640%1
Aug 10, 202640%0
Jul 29, 202630%1
Jan 22, 202630%0

Questions

How often are flights from GRR to DEN on time?

75% of 1,234 scheduled flights from Grand Rapids, MI to Denver, CO arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.4% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly GRR to DEN?

Flights scheduled to leave at 8 a.m. were the most reliable (85% on time). The 3 p.m. departures were the least (71%).

Which airline is most on time from GRR to DEN?

United Airlines: 77% of its 728 flights on the route arrived on time. Southwest Airlines: 72%. Frontier Airlines: 76%.

What month has the most delays from GRR to DEN?

January (63% on time). The best month is October (90%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from GRR to DEN more likely to be cancelled?

No, the opposite. Each airline's last GRR–DEN flight of the day was cancelled 0.3% of the time over the past year, against 0.8% for its earlier flights. If the last flight is cancelled, the next one is usually the following morning.

Related

Domestic flights by the airlines that report to the U.S. DOT, plus their regional partners. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes after schedule; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Past performance is a guide, not a forecast. Method.