Short Flights, Big Delays: 10 Worst Delay-to-Distance Routes

On America's shortest commercial routes, delays run as high as 44.6 minutes for every 100 miles flown — over eight times the rate on long-haul flights. The worst offenders are regional hops under 150 miles, where a routine 20-to-40-minute delay can consume more than half the actual flight time.

Key takeaways

• Short routes under 500 miles average 6.65 minutes of arrival delay for every 100 miles flown, versus just 0.78 minutes per 100 miles on routes of 1,500 miles or more — a delay-to-distance ratio about 8.5 times higher.
• The worst ratio in FlightRecord's data belongs to Chicago O'Hare to Milwaukee: 67 miles, a 29.9-minute average arrival delay, and 44.6 minutes of delay for every 100 miles flown.
• Average arrival delay barely changes with distance — it runs 15 to 18 minutes across every distance band — so the same delay eats up a far bigger share of a short trip than a long one.
• The 31-mile hop between Petersburg and Wrangell, Alaska is the shortest qualifying route in FlightRecord's dataset, and still averages a 9.5-minute delay.
• On Houston to Victoria, Texas, the average 41.5-minute delay eats up 72.6% of the entire scheduled flight time — the worst share-of-trip ratio among ranked short routes.

What is a delay-to-distance ratio?

Not by on-time percentage. Short routes under 500 miles arrive on time 79.3% of the time in FlightRecord's 24-month dataset, essentially matching (and slightly beating) the 78.2% rate on routes of 1,500 miles or more. Where short routes fall apart is proportion: their average delay, in raw minutes, is close to the average delay on long routes, so it swallows a much bigger share of a shorter trip. That's a distinct question from how often a flight runs late, which our broader look at flight distance and delay rates covers in more depth — this analysis is about how large a delay is relative to the trip itself.

Average arrival delay by flight distance, across every US route with at least 100 flights in the past 12 months:

• Under 300 miles — 16.97-minute average arrival delay, 9.57 minutes of delay per 100 miles (740 routes)
• 300–500 miles — 16.66-minute average delay, 4.19 minutes per 100 miles (877 routes)
• 500–800 miles — 18.03-minute average delay, 2.87 minutes per 100 miles (1,265 routes)
• 800–1,200 miles — 17.43-minute average delay, 1.79 minutes per 100 miles (1,436 routes)
• 1,200–2,000 miles — 16.26-minute average delay, 1.09 minutes per 100 miles (898 routes)
• 2,000+ miles — 15.19-minute average delay, 0.61 minutes per 100 miles (420 routes)

The average delay in minutes barely moves across that whole range. What changes is the denominator — a 17-minute delay is a rounding error on a five-hour flight and a third of the trip on a 45-minute one.

Which short US routes have the worst delay-to-distance ratio?

These are the ten US routes under 500 miles, each flying at least 100 times over the past 12 months, with the highest average arrival delay per 100 miles flown. (This is a different cut than FlightRecord's most-delayed routes ranking, which ranks by raw delay minutes rather than delay relative to distance.)

• 1. Chicago O'Hare (ORD) to Milwaukee (MKE) — 67 miles, 29.9-minute average arrival delay, 44.6 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 66.8% on time, 5,167 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 49.3% of the scheduled flight time.
• 2. Chicago O'Hare (ORD) to South Bend, IN (SBN) — 84 miles, 29.1-minute average arrival delay, 34.6 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 66.8% on time, 2,674 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 47.6% of the scheduled flight time.
• 3. Lansing, MI (LAN) to Detroit (DTW) — 74 miles, 25.7-minute average arrival delay, 34.7 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 75.9% on time, 911 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 49.6% of the scheduled flight time.
• 4. Houston Bush (IAH) to Victoria, TX (VCT) — 123 miles, 41.5-minute average arrival delay, 33.7 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 77.1% on time, 601 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 72.6% of the scheduled flight time.
• 5. Lafayette, IN (LAF) to Chicago O'Hare (ORD) — 119 miles, 39.3-minute average arrival delay, 33.0 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 73.4% on time, 474 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 58.6% of the scheduled flight time.
• 6. St. Thomas, USVI (STT) to San Juan, PR (SJU) — 68 miles, 22.2-minute average arrival delay, 32.7 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 73.0% on time, 541 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 47.3% of the scheduled flight time.
• 7. Denver (DEN) to Cheyenne, WY (CYS) — 90 miles, 29.3-minute average arrival delay, 32.6 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 76.2% on time, 740 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 60.4% of the scheduled flight time.
• 8. Johnstown, PA (JST) to Washington Dulles (IAD) — 119 miles, 38.7-minute average arrival delay, 32.5 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 77.9% on time, 347 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 57.3% of the scheduled flight time.
• 9. Morgantown, WV (MGW) to Washington Dulles (IAD) — 140 miles, 44.6-minute average arrival delay, 31.9 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 79.1% on time, 362 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 65.5% of the scheduled flight time.
• 10. Petersburg, AK (PSG) to Wrangell, AK (WRG) — 31 miles, 9.5-minute average arrival delay, 30.7 minutes of delay per 100 miles, 84.2% on time, 362 flights in the past 12 months. The delay eats up 35.2% of the scheduled flight time.

PSG to Wrangell is worth a second look: at 31 miles it's the shortest qualifying route in FlightRecord's dataset, and it still averages a 9.5-minute delay — proof that even a route too short to reach cruising altitude for long isn't immune.

Why do short routes have worse delay-to-distance ratios?

Part of it is pure arithmetic: dividing a similar number of delay minutes by a much smaller distance always produces a bigger ratio, regardless of cause. But the DOT's delay-cause breakdown (explained on FlightRecord's methodology page) shows the specific mechanics differ route by route.

Petersburg to Wrangell attributes 87.6% of its delay minutes to "late aircraft" — the incoming plane itself arrived late, pushing the next departure back — a pattern typical of short commuter routes where one aircraft flies several legs a day and an early delay cascades through the schedule. Lansing to Detroit is almost the opposite: 69.8% of its delay comes from carrier-caused factors (crew, maintenance, cabin cleaning) and only 1.8% from late aircraft. Across all 5,636 routes in this analysis, late aircraft accounts for 38.4% of delay minutes on average and carrier-caused factors 35.8%, so neither cause is unique to short routes — what's unique is how much a fixed number of delay minutes costs on a fixed, short amount of flight time.

Frequently asked questions

Do short flights get delayed more than long flights?

Not by on-time percentage — short flights under 500 miles are on time 79.3% of the time in FlightRecord's data, essentially the same as (and slightly better than) flights of 1,500 miles or more at 78.2%. But when a short flight is delayed, that delay eats up a far bigger share of the trip: short routes average 6.65 minutes of delay for every 100 miles flown, versus just 0.78 minutes per 100 miles on flights of 1,500 or more miles — a ratio about 8.5 times higher.

What does "delay-to-distance ratio" mean?

It's the average arrival delay in minutes divided by the flight's distance in miles, usually expressed per 100 miles for readability. A 30-minute delay means little on a 2,500-mile transcontinental flight (about 1.2 minutes per 100 miles) but is severe on a 70-mile hop (over 40 minutes per 100 miles). The ratio captures how much a delay actually costs relative to how long the flight is supposed to take, rather than just the raw delay total.

Are regional flights less reliable than long-haul flights?

Not by on-time rate. Regional flights under 500 miles post a slightly higher on-time percentage (79.3%) than long-haul flights of 1,500 miles or more (78.2%) in FlightRecord's 24-month dataset. Where they fall short is proportion: the average delay on a short flight is close in raw minutes to the average delay on a long flight, so it consumes a much bigger share of a short trip's total flight time.

Which short US routes have the worst delays relative to flight time?

Chicago O'Hare to Milwaukee has the worst delay-to-distance ratio among ranked US routes: a 67-mile hop averaging a 29.9-minute arrival delay, or 44.6 minutes of delay per 100 miles flown. Houston to Victoria, Texas has the worst ratio by share of flight time — its average 41.5-minute delay consumes 72.6% of the scheduled flight.

What counts as a "short" flight in this analysis?

This analysis defines short routes as those under 500 miles and compares them against routes of 1,500 miles or more. Every route included averages at least 100 flights over the past 12 months — the same volume floor FlightRecord uses before publishing a route page, well above the site's 30-flight minimum for showing any statistic at all.