ORD to SAT flight delays
Chicago, IL (ORD) San Antonio, TX (SAT) · 1,041 miles
3,566 flights · July 2024 – July 2026 · US Bureau of Transportation Statistics
75.17%
Arrived on time
Within 15 minutes of schedule
1.43%
Cancelled
Share of scheduled flights
71 min
When late, late by
Average across delayed arrivals
19 min
Delay per flight
Averaged over every flight flown
What the record says about this route
Which airline you fly changes the odds here. Republic Airways arrived on time 11.1 points more often than American Airlines over the same period on the same route — same airports, same weather, same air traffic control. A gap that survives all of that is about how the two airlines are run.
The season swings this route hard. In October it ran 37.7 points more punctual than in July — 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 two directions do not behave alike. SAT to ORD arrives on time 5.3 points more often than the outbound. Delay accumulates through the flying day, so whichever direction is scheduled later tends to carry the worse record — which is an argument for booking the morning departure if the choice exists.
Flights from Chicago to San Antonio run late more often than the average route, though not severely.
Which airline should you fly on this route?
Over July 2024 – July 2026, Republic Airways arrived on time most often on ORD to SAT. American Airlines was late most often. Flights ran closest to schedule in October and worst in July.
Every airline on ORD to SAT
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 1,556 | 76.41% | 0.64% | 75 min | C |
| American Airlines | 1,262 | 71.46% | 1.82% | 73 min | D |
| Envoy Air | 385 | 75.6% | 2.34% | 56 min | D |
| SkyWest Airlines | 249 | 82.23% | 2.01% | 62 min | C |
| Republic Airways | 114 | 82.57% | 3.51% | 61 min | C |
Month by month
Share of flights that arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, by month flown.
The return leg
SAT to ORD San Antonio back to Chicago 80.49% on time COther routes from Chicago
Common questions
Are flights from Chicago to San Antonio usually delayed?
75.17% of flights on the ORD to SAT 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 airline is most on time from Chicago to San Antonio?
Republic Airways, at 82.57% on time across 114 flights. The least punctual on the route was American Airlines at 71.46%.
How often are ORD to SAT flights cancelled?
1.43% of scheduled flights did not operate — about 14 in every thousand. That is in the normal range.
What is the best month to fly Chicago to San Antonio?
October, when 93.4% of flights arrived on time. The worst was July at 55.7%.
When ORD to SAT flights are late, how late are they?
About 71 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 ORD to SAT during July 2024 – July 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 →