Route Reliability

Route reliability

Denver (DEN) to Colorado Springs (COS): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Denver, CO (DEN) to Colorado Springs, CO (COS), September 2025 to August 2026.

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

Denver, COColorado Springs, CO

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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

DEN to COS

Denver, CO to Colorado Springs, CO

On time
75.5%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
Cancelled
1.3%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
8.9%vs 8.1% U.S. average About average
Scheduled flights
4,989in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
United Airlines80.6% on time · 526 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 DEN to COS, 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. United Airlines Most reliable 80.6% 0.6% 7.6% 67 min 0.0% 526
2. SkyWest Airlines Operating carrier; sold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska 75.3% 1.6% 9.5% 73 min 0.1% 3,338
3. Southwest Airlines 73.7% 0.4% 7.9% 55 min 0.0% 1,125

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

United Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • United Airlines had the best on-time record from Denver (DEN) to Colorado Springs (COS): 80.6% of its 526 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 73.7% for Southwest Airlines.
  • 1.3% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 77), 0.6 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 8.9% of flights, about 1 in 11, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 68 min.
  • Overall, 75.5% 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 (83.2% on time) and August the least reliable (65.0%).
  • Cancellations peaked in November, when 4.5% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 8 am to 9 am were the most punctual (92.5% on time); flights scheduled to depart 8 pm to 9 pm were the least (58.4%).
  • In the other direction, Colorado Springs (COS) to Denver (DEN), 80.4% of flights were on time and 1.1% were cancelled. Compare airlines COS to DEN.

Best and worst months to fly DEN to COS

Jan 72.5%
Feb 76.3%
Mar 80.0%
Apr 76.5%
May 72.7%
Jun 66.3%
Jul 65.6%
Aug 65.0%
Sep 80.7%
Oct 83.2%
Nov 79.5%
Dec 79.7%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 75.5%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 72.5% 1,187
February 76.3% 1,086
March 80.0% 1,218
April 76.5% 1,206
May 72.7% 1,331
June 66.3% 1,346
July 65.6% 1,336
August 65.0% 1,345
September 80.7% 1,262
October 83.2% 1,312
November 79.5% 1,197
December 79.7% 1,226
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
United Airlines October (87.7%) July (57.6%)
SkyWest Airlines October (83.1%) August (66.5%)
Southwest Airlines October (81.0%) June (57.8%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 79.0%
Oct 81.6%
Nov 79.6%
Dec 75.1%
Jan 78.0%
Feb 82.7%
Mar 79.4%
Apr 81.2%
May 76.6%
Jun 68.6%
Jul 66.2%
Aug 61.3%
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 79.0% 443
Oct 2025 81.6% 450
Nov 2025 79.6% 426
Dec 2025 75.1% 441
Jan 2026 78.0% 387
Feb 2026 82.7% 346
Mar 2026 79.4% 388
Apr 2026 81.2% 362
May 2026 76.6% 428
Jun 2026 68.6% 436
Jul 2026 66.2% 435
Aug 2026 61.3% 447

Best and worst departure times

7a 84.3%
8a 92.5%
9a 85.3%
10a 82.8%
11a 77.8%
12p 90.0%
1p 78.6%
2p 77.3%
3p 78.0%
4p 67.2%
5p 63.6%
6p 64.0%
7p 70.1%
8p 58.4%
9p 73.8%
10p 78.0%
11p 85.4%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at DEN, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 7 am to 8 am 84.3% 324
Departing 8 am to 9 am 92.5% 159
Departing 9 am to 10 am 85.3% 354
Departing 10 am to 11 am 82.8% 198
Departing 11 am to noon 77.8% 383
Departing noon to 1 pm 90.0% 190
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 78.6% 415
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 77.3% 97
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 78.0% 473
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 67.2% 253
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 63.6% 451
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 64.0% 75
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 70.1% 529
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 58.4% 385
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 73.8% 443
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 78.0% 123
Departing 11 pm to midnight 85.4% 137
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 Denver, CO (DEN) to Colorado Springs, CO (COS), 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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