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 (seasonal or thin)


United	ORF	DEN	4h 00m	82%	0.5%	416	Flying now
Southwest	ORF	DEN	4h 05m	65%	1.4%	220	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Denver on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Denver is 2 h behind Norfolk). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


United Details →	ORF 06:00 → ORD 07:29UA 5690 · flown by SkyWest	3h 25m Chicago	ORD 10:54 → DEN 12:45UA 581	8h 45m	100%	94%
United Details →	ORF 06:05 → IAD 07:07UA 1524	3h 06m Dulles	IAD 10:13 → DEN 12:05UA 1865	8h 00m	100%	93%
American Details →	ORF 05:01 → CLT 06:19AA 3168	1h 20m Charlotte	CLT 07:39 → DEN 09:10AA 1754	6h 09m	99%	90%
Delta Details →	ORF 08:00 → ATL 09:49DL 1338	3h 01m Atlanta	ATL 12:50 → DEN 14:04DL 957	8h 04m	98%	87%
Delta Details →	ORF 06:20 → ATL 08:10DL 1364	3h 35m Atlanta	ATL 11:45 → DEN 12:59DL 706	8h 39m	100%	84%
United Details →	ORF 06:15 → IAH 08:20UA 2302	1h 12m Houston	IAH 09:32 → DEN 11:08UA 1450	6h 53m	97%	83%
United Details →	ORF 10:45 → IAD 11:48UA 2066	1h 00m Dulles	IAD 12:48 → DEN 14:42UA 1587	5h 57m	92%	83%
Southwest Details →	ORF 06:00 → BWI 07:00WN 3183	2h 40m Baltimore	BWI 09:40 → DEN 11:25WN 275	7h 25m	98%	83%
Tight connection: often missed
American Details →	ORF 07:27 → PHL 08:43AA 5271 · flown by PSA	52m Philadelphia	PHL 09:35 → DEN 11:56AA 3312	6h 29m	72%	59%
Delta Details →	ORF 16:43 → ATL 18:38DL 1101	47m Atlanta	ATL 19:25 → DEN 20:44DL 746	6h 01m	56%	38%
American Details →	ORF 15:17 → DFW 17:41AA 2262	49m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 18:30 → DEN 19:41AA 2235	6h 24m	62%	27%

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

CLT · 1h 20m · leaves 05:01 1%

IAD · 1h 08m · leaves 06:05 3%

DFW · 1h 13m · leaves 07:03 9%

Afternoon and evening

EWR · 1h 17m · leaves 17:44 22%

DFW · 49m · leaves 15:17 38%

ATL · 47m · leaves 16:43 44%

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 4683 ORF 06:44 → ORD United UA 581 ORD 10:54 → DEN Connection details →	2h 29m	8h 01m	96%	92%
American AA 3168 ORF 05:01 → CLT United UA 1963 CLT 08:40 → DEN Connection details →	2h 21m	7h 26m	99%	88%
Delta DL 1364 ORF 06:20 → ATL United UA 1327 ATL 11:10 → DEN Connection details →	3h 00m	8h 08m	98%	87%

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