Flights Columbus → Chicago
CMH → MDW
Route overview
The flight route from Columbus to Chicago operates with a 72% on-time performance rate, experiencing an average delay of 14.6 minutes per flight. Over the past year, this route has seen 261 total flights departing from Columbus, which is served by an airport that opened in 1929, while the destination, Chicago's airport, handles nearly 19.9 million passengers annually.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Columbus (CMH) → Chicago (MDW) route is operated by Southwest Airlines. Across 368 flights monitored in recent months, 74% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 13 minutes. The cancellation rate is 5.43%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 23/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Chicago the average ATFM delay is 2.0 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Columbus the average ATFM delay is 2.0 minutes.
Heading to Chicago: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Columbus (CMH) to Chicago (MDW) heads north-west for about 454 km, a flight time of roughly 59m.
Departures from Columbus on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 34% of CMH-MDW flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Columbus the average ATFM delay is 2.0 min (atfm); arriving into Chicago it is 2.0 min (atfm).
Across 368 tracked CMH-MDW flights, 74% left on time with an average delay of 13 min and a 5.4% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines (WN) | 73% | 6 min | 3.1% |
Airlines operating CMH-MDW
Airports
Frequently asked questions about CMH-MDW
On the Columbus (CMH) -> Chicago (MDW) route, on-time performance is 74% with an average delay of 13 minutes, based on 368 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Columbus-Chicago is 5.43% across 368 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: Southwest Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Chicago, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
