ON TIMEBOARD

ORD → CID on time

Chicago O'Hare (Chicago, IL) to The Eastern Iowa (Cedar Rapids/Iowa City, IA). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
65%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
3.6%
3,537 flights
Typical arrival
−1 min
median vs schedule
When late
+90 min
average delay
Flights / day
10
2 airlines

65% of flights from Chicago to Cedar Rapids arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is worse than the typical U.S. route. The 11 a.m. departures ran on time 74% of the time; the 9 p.m. ones 54%. Most reliable airline: American Airlines (67%). 18% 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 ORD → CID: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 43% of the time. About 1 in 7 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 32 three hours or more; 3.6% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 3,537 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
United Airlines1,95663%3.2%+1 min15.9%+91 minGoJet 38%, United Airlines 28%, SkyWest 27%, Republic Airways 8%
American Airlines1,58167%4.2%−3 min13.0%+88 minEnvoy 53%, SkyWest 21%, Republic Airways 14%, American Airlines 12%, PSA Airlines 0%

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 ORD). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%7 a.m. departures: too few flights (67 flights)7a8 a.m. departures: 71% on time (212 flights)718a9 a.m. departures: 72% on time (401 flights)729a10 a.m. departures: 71% on time (150 flights)7110a11 a.m. departures: 74% on time (150 flights)7411anoon departures: 71% on time (357 flights)7112p1 p.m. departures: 70% on time (187 flights)701p2 p.m. departures: too few flights (57 flights)2p3 p.m. departures: 62% on time (324 flights)623p4 p.m. departures: 65% on time (262 flights)654p5 p.m. departures: 60% on time (392 flights)605p6 p.m. departures: too few flights (34 flights)6p7 p.m. departures: too few flights (98 flights)7p8 p.m. departures: 63% on time (301 flights)638p9 p.m. departures: 54% on time (253 flights)549p10 p.m. departures: 56% on time (261 flights)5610p11 p.m. departures: too few flights (31 flights)11p
ORD → CID, 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 AirlinesAmerican Airlines
8 a.m.—67%
9 a.m.70%75%
11 a.m.—72%
noon69%—
1 p.m.—65%
3 p.m.62%—
4 p.m.—67%
5 p.m.55%75%
8 p.m.64%—
9 p.m.52%56%
10 p.m.—57%

Last flight of the day

On ORD → CID, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 3.6% of the time, against 3.6% for its earlier flights, about the same. It arrived 3+ hours late 2.5% of the time (earlier flights: 3.3%). 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
American Airlines10:45 p.m.5.5%2.2%3.8%first flight 10:00 a.m.
United Airlines9:20 p.m.1.6%2.7%3.5%first flight 8:40 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: September (81%). Worst: July (60%).

40%70%100%Jan: 62% on time (664 flights)62JanFeb: 73% on time (651 flights)73FebMar: 68% on time (712 flights)68MarApr: 69% on time (804 flights)69AprMay: 70% on time (880 flights)70MayJun: 67% on time (711 flights)67JunJul: 60% on time (723 flights)60JulAug: 65% on time (829 flights)65AugSep: 81% on time (713 flights)81SepOct: 80% on time (760 flights)80OctNov: 73% on time (688 flights)73NovDec: 64% on time (701 flights)64Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday52760%5.5%
Tuesday50170%2.6%
Wednesday49466%1.6%
Thursday50964%2.5%
Friday51063%4.9%
Saturday47566%3.8%
Sunday52164%4.2%

Why flights were late

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

Late inbound plane 49%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 23%Severe weather 14%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 14%

Cancellations: weather 101 · air traffic/airport 23 · airline 4

Month by month

40%70%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2023: 85% on time, 0.5% cancelledNov 2023: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 81% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 50% on time, 13.1% cancelledFeb 2024: 87% on time, 0.6% cancelledMar 2024: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2024: 71% on time, 0.5% cancelledMay 2024: 58% on time, 0.9% cancelledJun 2024: 57% on time, 2.0% cancelledJul 2024: 60% on time, 2.4% cancelledAug 2024: 66% on time, 1.5% cancelledSep 2024: 84% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 79% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 79% on time, 0.5% cancelledDec 2024: 69% on time, 7.4% cancelledJan 2025: 76% on time, 1.4% cancelledFeb 2025: 67% on time, 0.5% cancelledMar 2025: 69% on time, 4.3% cancelledApr 2025: 77% on time, 1.8% cancelledMay 2025: 77% on time, 1.4% cancelledJun 2025: 74% on time, 0.7% cancelledJul 2025: 55% on time, 2.2% cancelledAug 2025: 71% on time, 2.4% cancelledSep 2025: 80% on time, 0.7% cancelledOct 2025: 77% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 63% on time, 8.0% cancelledDec 2025: 49% on time, 7.6% cancelledJan 2026: 59% on time, 1.8% cancelledFeb 2026: 69% on time, 0.7% cancelledMar 2026: 54% on time, 8.0% cancelledApr 2026: 63% on time, 5.8% cancelledMay 2026: 72% on time, 0.3% cancelledJun 2026: 68% on time, 4.2% cancelledJul 2026: 65% on time, 3.6% cancelledAug 2026: 56% on time, 2.5% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
ORD → CID, 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 19238:20 p.m.33861%1.2%+4 minUnited Airlines

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Nov 30, 2025120%2
Dec 7, 2025110%4
Mar 6, 2026110%6
Mar 15, 2026100%8
Nov 29, 2025100%9

Questions

How often are flights from ORD to CID on time?

65% of 3,537 scheduled flights from Chicago, IL to Cedar Rapids/Iowa City, IA arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 3.6% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly ORD to CID?

Flights scheduled to leave at 11 a.m. were the most reliable (74% on time). The 9 p.m. departures were the least (54%).

Which airline is most on time from ORD to CID?

American Airlines: 67% of its 1,581 flights on the route arrived on time. United Airlines: 63%.

What month has the most delays from ORD to CID?

July (60% on time). The best month is September (81%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from ORD to CID more likely to be cancelled?

Not much. Each airline's last ORD–CID flight of the day was cancelled 3.6% of the time over the past year, against 3.6% 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.