DTW to DEN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to Denver International Airport · 1,123 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at DTW or DEN right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Detroit (DTW) to Denver (DEN) arrived on time 80% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.4% were cancelled, and 6% arrived an hour or more late.
- Frontier Airlines was the most punctual airline here (83% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (76%).
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (93% on time); around 5pm did worst (68%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (82% on time) and Sunday the least (78%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (37%).
Which airline is most on time from DTW to DEN?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 100% | 0.0% | 0 min | 0.0% | 1 |
| Frontier Airlines | 83% | 0.2% | 14 min | 6.8% | 473 |
| United Airlines | 83% | 0.6% | 11 min | 5.3% | 726 |
| Delta Air Lines | 79% | 0.2% | 13 min | 6.2% | 1,246 |
| Southwest Airlines | 76% | 0.6% | 15 min | 5.8% | 649 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am93%98 flights
- 6am92%169 flights
- 7am84%142 flights
- 8am87%564 flights
- 9am84%275 flights
- 11am92%73 flights
- 12pm83%355 flights
- 1pm85%198 flights
- 3pm80%212 flights
- 4pm73%586 flights
- 5pm68%104 flights
- 6pm49%73 flights
- 8pm72%92 flights
- 9pm62%69 flights
- 10pm65%38 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday80%0.7% cancelled
- Tuesday82%0.2% cancelled
- Wednesday81%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday80%0.2% cancelled
- Friday79%0.2% cancelled
- Saturday82%0.5% cancelled
- Sunday78%0.6% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)37%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion32%
- Late-arriving aircraft28%
- Extreme weather3%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)55%
- Extreme weather27%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion18%
- Security0%
DTW to DEN: common questions
- How often are DTW to DEN flights on time?
- 80% 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 Detroit to Denver cancelled?
- 0.4% of scheduled flights were cancelled (11 of 3,095).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 13 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 60 min behind schedule on average, and 6.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at DTW?
- Flights on this route spent 17 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: DEN to DTW — 78% on time
More flights from Detroit
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: DTW → DEN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.