Route Reliability

Route reliability

Detroit (DTW) to Orlando (MCO): which airline is most on time?

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

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

Detroit, MIOrlando, FL

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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

DTW to MCO

Detroit, MI to Orlando, FL

On time
74.3%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
Cancelled
1.0%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
8.9%vs 8.1% U.S. average About average
Scheduled flights
3,600in 12 months4 airlines
Most reliable airline
Spirit Airlines76.2% on time · 777 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 DTW to MCO, 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. Spirit Airlines Most reliable 76.2% 1.2% 7.6% 65 min 0.1% 777
2. Delta Air Lines 74.4% 0.8% 8.9% 73 min 0.4% 2,211
3. Frontier Airlines 72.9% 1.6% 10.3% 96 min 1.0% 495
4. Southwest Airlines Small sample (under 300 flights) 66.7% 0.0% 10.3% 57 min 0.9% 117

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

Spirit Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • Spirit Airlines had the best on-time record from Detroit (DTW) to Orlando (MCO): 76.2% of its 777 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 72.9% for Frontier Airlines.
  • 1.0% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 100), 0.9 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 74 min.
  • Overall, 74.3% of flights on this route arrived on time, 1.3 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month on this route (85.6% on time) and January the least reliable (65.0%).
  • Cancellations peaked in October, when 2.7% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 7 am to 8 am were the most punctual (87.4% on time); flights scheduled to depart 4 pm to 5 pm were the least (62.4%).
  • In the other direction, Orlando (MCO) to Detroit (DTW), 72.0% of flights were on time and 1.1% were cancelled. Compare airlines MCO to DTW.

Best and worst months to fly DTW to MCO

Jan 65.0%
Feb 80.6%
Mar 73.2%
Apr 83.7%
May 78.5%
Jun 73.7%
Jul 67.5%
Aug 71.4%
Sep 85.6%
Oct 84.4%
Nov 82.7%
Dec 74.2%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 74.3%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 65.0% 997
February 80.6% 1,057
March 73.2% 1,249
April 83.7% 1,041
May 78.5% 859
June 73.7% 816
July 67.5% 850
August 71.4% 844
September 85.6% 772
October 84.4% 931
November 82.7% 931
December 74.2% 1,035
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
Spirit Airlines October (88.4%) January (73.1%)
Delta Air Lines September (88.7%) January (60.0%)
Frontier Airlines April (85.6%) August (61.1%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 86.8%
Oct 84.7%
Nov 76.5%
Dec 62.1%
Jan 60.4%
Feb 80.2%
Mar 67.3%
Apr 81.6%
May 79.0%
Jun 79.2%
Jul 68.7%
Aug 72.2%
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 86.8% 250
Oct 2025 84.7% 321
Nov 2025 76.5% 293
Dec 2025 62.1% 343
Jan 2026 60.4% 331
Feb 2026 80.2% 354
Mar 2026 67.3% 413
Apr 2026 81.6% 343
May 2026 79.0% 224
Jun 2026 79.2% 212
Jul 2026 68.7% 268
Aug 2026 72.2% 248

Best and worst departure times

<6a 85.7%
6a 84.1%
7a 87.4%
8a 86.6%
9a 92.0%
10a 73.7%
11a 78.6%
12p 74.9%
1p 71.0%
2p 71.1%
3p Insufficient sample
4p 62.4%
5p 63.4%
6p 66.0%
7p 68.6%
8p 62.7%
9p 59.3%
10p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at DTW, 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 85.7% 105
Departing 6 am to 7 am 84.1% 220
Departing 7 am to 8 am 87.4% 437
Departing 8 am to 9 am 86.6% 269
Departing 9 am to 10 am 92.0% 50
Departing 10 am to 11 am 73.7% 445
Departing 11 am to noon 78.6% 98
Departing noon to 1 pm 74.9% 331
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 71.0% 124
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 71.1% 367
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm Insufficient sample 46
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 62.4% 303
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 63.4% 142
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 66.0% 253
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 68.6% 172
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 62.7% 150
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 59.3% 86
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm Insufficient sample 2
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 Detroit, MI (DTW) to Orlando, FL (MCO), 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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