Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

No clear winner: airlines and hours on this route all land within a few points of 3 in 4 on time.

Nonstops


United	DAY	ORD	1h 32m	76%	3.5%	1,892	Flying now
American	DAY	ORD	1h 31m	74%	3.9%	1,300	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Chicago on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Chicago is 1 h behind Dayton). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


American Details →	DAY 06:31 → CLT 08:20AA 5234 · flown by PSA	2h 41m Charlotte	CLT 11:01 → ORD 12:19AA 2908	6h 48m	96%	84%
American Details →	DAY 05:50 → PHL 07:33AA 5587 · flown by PSA	3h 02m Philadelphia	PHL 10:35 → ORD 12:09AA 1041	7h 19m	100%	77%
United Details →	DAY 09:01 → DEN 10:04UA 1235	1h 11m Denver	DEN 11:15 → ORD 14:55UA 2865	6h 54m	95%	77%
American Details →	DAY 06:00 → DCA 07:39AA 5261 · flown by PSA	3h 56m Washington	DCA 11:35 → ORD 12:53AA 489	7h 53m	97%	76%
Delta Details →	DAY 06:00 → ATL 07:42DL 3140	1h 20m Atlanta	ATL 09:02 → ORD 10:13DL 1147	5h 13m	94%	71%
American Details →	DAY 09:34 → DCA 11:10AA 5159 · flown by PSA	2h 49m Washington	DCA 13:59 → ORD 15:24AA 1200	6h 50m	97%	70%
United Details →	DAY 10:23 → IAD 11:53UA 4181 · flown by GoJet	1h 22m Dulles	IAD 13:15 → ORD 14:29UA 2331	5h 06m	86%	70%
American Details →	DAY 08:30 → CLT 10:19AA 5242 · flown by PSA	2h 46m Charlotte	CLT 13:05 → ORD 14:20AA 836	6h 50m	98%	68%
Tight connection: often missed
American Details →	DAY 18:32 → DFW 20:11AA 5156 · flown by PSA	49m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 21:00 → ORD 23:39AA 2346	6h 07m	54%	30%
American Details →	DAY 17:40 → DCA 19:15AA 5162 · flown by PSA	51m Washington	DCA 20:06 → ORD 21:42AA 2903	5h 02m	40%	26%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

DEN · 1h 11m · leaves 09:01 5%

ATL · 1h 20m · leaves 06:00 6%

DFW · 49m · leaves 08:15 20%

Afternoon and evening

IAD · 55m · leaves 19:43 15%

DFW · 49m · leaves 18:32 46%

DCA · 51m · leaves 17:40 60%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.


American AA 5261 DAY 06:00 → DCA United UA 2201 DCA 10:30 → ORD Connection details →	2h 51m	6h 48m	94%	82%
Delta DL 3140 DAY 06:00 → ATL United UA 1239 ATL 11:29 → ORD Connection details →	3h 47m	7h 52m	98%	78%
American AA 5234 DAY 06:31 → CLT United UA 4680 CLT 10:35 → ORD Connection details →	2h 15m	6h 28m	94%	78%

Rank all connections, any airlines →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON