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 82% on time.

Nonstops


Delta	DTW	MCI	2h 03m	82%	1.2%	1,344	Flying now
American	DTW	MCI	–	100%few flights	0.0%	1	Not flying now
Spirit	DTW	MCI	–	67%few flights	0.0%	3	Not flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

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


Southwest Details →	DTW 05:30 → DEN 06:35WN 1778	1h 10m Denver	DEN 07:45 → MCI 10:25WN 1584	5h 50m	95%	88%
Southwest Details →	DTW 05:50 → BWI 07:20WN 4534	55m Baltimore	BWI 08:15 → MCI 09:58WN 4215	5h 07m	89%	88%
American Details →	DTW 05:37 → DFW 07:32AA 1108	2h 28m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 10:00 → MCI 11:44AA 3661 · flown by Envoy	7h 07m	98%	87%
Delta Details →	DTW 09:00 → MSP 09:55DL 2258	3h 50m Minneapolis	MSP 13:45 → MCI 15:14DL 1613	7h 14m	99%	86%
Delta Details →	DTW 08:25 → ATL 10:25DL 1653	2h 59m Atlanta	ATL 13:24 → MCI 14:32DL 1443	7h 07m	97%	86%
Delta Details →	DTW 06:17 → ATL 08:12DL 1611	1h 53m Atlanta	ATL 10:05 → MCI 11:16DL 2908	5h 59m	97%	85%
Delta Details →	DTW 05:17 → ATL 07:10DL 2375	1h 10m Atlanta	ATL 08:20 → MCI 09:31DL 2471	5h 14m	94%	85%
Delta Details →	DTW 12:20 → MSP 13:14DL 2697	2h 06m Minneapolis	MSP 15:20 → MCI 16:47DL 1630	5h 28m	97%	84%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	DTW 12:25 → ATL 14:23DL 2188	1h 01m Atlanta	ATL 15:24 → MCI 16:35DL 1660	5h 10m	72%	61%
Southwest Details →	DTW 20:15 → STL 20:50WN 4159	55m St Louis	STL 21:45 → MCI 22:50WN 2453	3h 35m	40%	24%
American Details →	DTW 19:51 → DFW 21:44AA 1786	1h 00m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 22:44 → MCI 00:23 +1AA 1036	5h 32m	47%	23%

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 10m · leaves 05:30 5%

IAD · 1h 05m · leaves 10:13 6%

CLT · 57m · leaves 07:00 6%

Afternoon and evening

DCA · 1h 03m · leaves 17:29 50%

DFW · 1h 00m · leaves 19:51 53%

STL · 55m · leaves 20:15 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.


Delta DL 1113 DTW 08:40 → DEN Southwest WN 351 DEN 12:30 → MCI Connection details →	2h 37m	7h 25m	97%	85%
Delta DL 1611 DTW 06:17 → ATL Southwest WN 3931 ATL 10:55 → MCI Connection details →	2h 43m	6h 43m	97%	82%
Delta DL 2884 DTW 08:50 → IAD United UA 3528 IAD 12:55 → MCI Connection details →	2h 32m	6h 55m	100%	80%

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