MBS to ORD flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from MBS International Airport to Chicago O'Hare International Airport · 222 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at MBS or ORD right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Saginaw/Bay City/Midland (MBS) to Chicago (ORD) arrived on time 68% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 3.2% were cancelled, and 17% arrived an hour or more late.
- SkyWest Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 6am did best (88% on time); around 5pm did worst (34%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (72% on time) and Friday the least (58%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (35%).
Which airline is most on time from MBS to ORD?
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. | 68% | 3.2% | 36 min | 17.0% | 1,006 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am72%32 flights
- 6am88%35 flights
- 7am74%207 flights
- 9am70%100 flights
- 1pm67%61 flights
- 2pm70%300 flights
- 4pm63%138 flights
- 5pm34%32 flights
- 6pm46%49 flights
- 7pm63%19 flights
- 8pm64%30 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday65%4.9% cancelled
- Tuesday72%4.1% cancelled
- Wednesday71%2.1% cancelled
- Thursday71%1.4% cancelled
- Friday58%2.0% cancelled
- Saturday68%3.6% cancelled
- Sunday68%4.1% 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)35%
- Late-arriving aircraft34%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion19%
- Extreme weather12%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather88%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion9%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)3%
- Security0%
MBS to ORD: common questions
- How often are MBS to ORD flights on time?
- 68% 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 Saginaw/Bay City/Midland to Chicago cancelled?
- 3.2% of scheduled flights were cancelled (32 of 1,006).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 36 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 107 min behind schedule on average, and 17.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at MBS?
- Flights on this route spent 23 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: MBS → ORD, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.