Route Reliability

Route reliability

Atlanta (ATL) to Detroit (DTW): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Atlanta, GA (ATL) to Detroit, MI (DTW), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Atlanta, GADetroit, MI

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

ATL to DTW

Atlanta, GA to Detroit, MI

On time
75.8%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
Cancelled
0.8%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
8.2%vs 8.1% U.S. average About average
Scheduled flights
4,821in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
Delta Air Lines77.4% on time · 3,774 flights

On time about as often as the U.S. average, with fewer cancellations.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from ATL to DTW, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. Delta Air Lines Most reliable 77.4% 0.5% 7.3% 60 min 0.1% 3,774
2. Spirit Airlines 76.2% 2.6% 9.6% 82 min 0.0% 501
3. Frontier Airlines 63.7% 1.3% 12.8% 68 min 0.0% 546

On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.

What this means

Delta Air Lines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Delta Air Lines had the best on-time record from Atlanta (ATL) to Detroit (DTW): 77.4% of its 3,774 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 63.7% for Frontier Airlines.
  • 0.8% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 125), 1.1 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 8.2% of flights, about 1 in 12, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 64 min.
  • Overall, 75.8% of flights on this route arrived on time, about the same as the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, October was the most reliable month on this route (87.0% on time) and July the least reliable (59.5%).
  • Cancellations peaked in July, when 2.1% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 6 am to 7 am were the most punctual (89.5% on time); flights scheduled to depart 9 pm to 10 pm were the least (60.5%).
  • In the other direction, Detroit (DTW) to Atlanta (ATL), 78.1% of flights were on time and 0.8% were cancelled. Compare airlines DTW to ATL.

Best and worst months to fly ATL to DTW

Jan 74.9%
Feb 82.7%
Mar 76.4%
Apr 84.1%
May 72.9%
Jun 73.7%
Jul 59.5%
Aug 74.0%
Sep 85.2%
Oct 87.0%
Nov 84.2%
Dec 76.9%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 75.8%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 74.9% 1,153
February 82.7% 1,092
March 76.4% 1,267
April 84.1% 1,266
May 72.9% 1,291
June 73.7% 1,236
July 59.5% 1,308
August 74.0% 1,310
September 85.2% 1,273
October 87.0% 1,305
November 84.2% 1,229
December 76.9% 1,223
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Delta Air Lines October (89.0%) July (61.6%)
Spirit Airlines October (84.9%) July (61.0%)
Frontier Airlines November (82.1%) July (41.4%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 87.6%
Oct 85.0%
Nov 82.1%
Dec 73.1%
Jan 75.4%
Feb 80.3%
Mar 69.4%
Apr 83.8%
May 68.2%
Jun 78.8%
Jul 56.4%
Aug 69.5%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 87.6% 421
Oct 2025 85.0% 427
Nov 2025 82.1% 375
Dec 2025 73.1% 379
Jan 2026 75.4% 395
Feb 2026 80.3% 356
Mar 2026 69.4% 422
Apr 2026 83.8% 426
May 2026 68.2% 403
Jun 2026 78.8% 377
Jul 2026 56.4% 420
Aug 2026 69.5% 420

Best and worst departure times

<6a Insufficient sample
6a 89.5%
7a 89.3%
8a 83.7%
9a 79.8%
10a 71.2%
11a 78.0%
12p 74.4%
1p 85.5%
2p 74.5%
3p 70.5%
4p 76.9%
5p 68.0%
6p 76.4%
7p 70.3%
8p 69.6%
9p 60.5%
10p 64.0%
11p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at ATL, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing before 6 am Insufficient sample 1
Departing 6 am to 7 am 89.5% 257
Departing 7 am to 8 am 89.3% 403
Departing 8 am to 9 am 83.7% 135
Departing 9 am to 10 am 79.8% 377
Departing 10 am to 11 am 71.2% 73
Departing 11 am to noon 78.0% 459
Departing noon to 1 pm 74.4% 82
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 85.5% 318
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 74.5% 267
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 70.5% 319
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 76.9% 308
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 68.0% 175
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 76.4% 369
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 70.3% 249
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 69.6% 319
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 60.5% 233
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 64.0% 470
Departing 11 pm to midnight Insufficient sample 7
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

Sources & data dates

Source
U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
Period
September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
Data through
August 2026
Processed
2026-11-03
Scope
Nonstop scheduled flights from Atlanta, GA (ATL) to Detroit, MI (DTW), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
Method
Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.

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