DEN to PHL flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Denver International Airport to Philadelphia International Airport · 1,558 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at DEN or PHL right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Denver (DEN) to Philadelphia (PHL) arrived on time 74% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 1.2% were cancelled, and 9% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (80% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (63%).
- Departures scheduled around 7am did best (88% on time); around 7pm did worst (38%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (81% on time) and Thursday the least (69%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (42%).
Which airline is most on time from DEN to PHL?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 80% | 0.5% | 14 min | 6.8% | 952 |
| American Airlines | 79% | 1.6% | 23 min | 8.3% | 903 |
| Frontier Airlines | 66% | 3.0% | 33 min | 13.6% | 296 |
| Southwest Airlines | 63% | 0.8% | 23 min | 11.0% | 879 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am90%89 flights
- 7am88%159 flights
- 8am87%177 flights
- 9am81%118 flights
- 10am83%507 flights
- 11am78%128 flights
- 12pm72%257 flights
- 1pm76%244 flights
- 2pm68%201 flights
- 4pm61%48 flights
- 5pm68%477 flights
- 6pm46%93 flights
- 7pm38%129 flights
- 11pm70%375 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday69%0.7% cancelled
- Tuesday81%1.5% cancelled
- Wednesday74%0.5% cancelled
- Thursday69%0.4% cancelled
- Friday74%0.8% cancelled
- Saturday79%1.3% cancelled
- Sunday70%2.9% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft42%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)39%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion17%
- Extreme weather2%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather77%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)20%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion3%
- Security0%
DEN to PHL: common questions
- How often are DEN to PHL flights on time?
- 74% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Denver to Philadelphia cancelled?
- 1.2% of scheduled flights were cancelled (35 of 3,030).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 21 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 75 min behind schedule on average, and 9.1% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at DEN?
- Flights on this route spent 19 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: PHL to DEN — 75% on time
More flights from Denver
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: DEN → PHL, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.