MSY to MDW flight delays
New Orleans, LA (MSY) Chicago, IL (MDW) · 825 miles
1,018 flights · January 2025 – August 2026 · US Bureau of Transportation Statistics
77.1%
Arrived on time
Within 15 minutes of schedule
1.08%
Cancelled
Share of scheduled flights
53 min
When late, late by
Average across delayed arrivals
14 min
Delay per flight
Averaged over every flight flown
What the record says about this route
The season swings this route hard. In February it ran 33.5 points more punctual than in March — a difference bigger than the one between the best and worst airlines on most routes. If the date is flexible, it is worth more than the carrier.
The route has been getting worse. The later months run 10.2 points less punctual than the earlier ones. A drift of that size is rarely weather; it is more often an airline adding frequencies faster than the airports can absorb them.
Only Southwest Airlines flies this route in the published record, so there is no choice to weigh — the route's figures and the airline's are the same figures.
The New Orleans to Chicago route sits close to the middle of the record — neither notably punctual nor notably late.
Which airline should you fly on this route?
Over January 2025 – August 2026, Southwest Airlines arrived on time most often on MSY to MDW. Flights ran closest to schedule in February and worst in March.
Every airline on MSY to MDW
Ranked by how many flights each one operated. A carrier with fewer than 100 flights in the period is listed but not graded.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 1,018 | 77.1% | 1.08% | 53 min | C |
Month by month
Share of flights that arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, by month flown.
The return leg
MDW to MSY Chicago back to New Orleans 74.13% on time DOther routes from New Orleans
Common questions
Are flights from New Orleans to Chicago usually delayed?
77.1% of flights on the MSY to MDW route arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, so roughly 2 in every ten arrived late. That is about the same as the average route in this record.
Which airlines fly from New Orleans to Chicago?
Only Southwest Airlines appears in the published record on this route, with 1,018 flights and 77.1% arriving on time.
How often are MSY to MDW flights cancelled?
1.08% of scheduled flights did not operate — about 11 in every thousand. That is in the normal range.
What is the best month to fly New Orleans to Chicago?
February, when 92.6% of flights arrived on time. The worst was March at 59.1%.
When MSY to MDW flights are late, how late are they?
About 53 minutes on average across the flights that arrived more than 15 minutes behind schedule.
What these figures do and do not tell you
Everything on this page is counted from the flights that actually operated on MSY to MDW during January 2025 – August 2026, as reported by the airlines to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. "On time" is the federal definition: arriving at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.
A route's record is a description of the past, not a forecast. Weather, air traffic control and the aircraft's earlier flights that day drive most delays, and none of them are predictable from a historical rate. What the record does tell you is whether this route runs late more often than others, and which carrier on it has the better history — which is the part you can actually act on when you book.
Cancellations are counted separately from delays because they are a different problem for a traveller: a late flight still gets you there. How the grade is calculated →