Historical on-time performance
Detroit to Los Angeles
Flights on DTW–LAX arrive on time 78% of the time over the last 12 months.
based on 2,599 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
Too close to call — no single carrier is clearly more on-time here.
- Spirit AirlinesOn-time80%Medianon timep9040 minCancel1.0%Flights600
- Delta Air LinesOn-time77%Medianon timep9040 minCancel0.9%Flights1,999
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline53%
- Weather4%
- Air traffic (NAS)19%
- Late aircraft23%
- Security1%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Airline.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline83%
- Weather17%
- Air traffic (NAS)0%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Airline. Shares are among 23 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly DTW → LAX
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-06 .. 2026-05).
Best time of day
Mornings are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 87% on time.
- Mornings87% on time · p90 15 min · 2,230 flights
- Middays84% on time · p90 25 min · 1,490 flights
- Afternoons80% on time · p90 35 min · 1,432 flights
- Evenings77% on time · p90 40 min · 1,370 flights
- Overnights70% on time · p90 55 min · 1,641 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 77% to 86% on time.
- Wednesdays86% on time · p90 20 min · 1,119 flights
- Tuesdays84% on time · p90 20 min · 1,126 flights
- Saturdays80% on time · p90 35 min · 1,112 flights
- Thursdays80% on time · p90 35 min · 1,194 flights
- Fridays78% on time · p90 35 min · 1,217 flights
- Mondays77% on time · p90 45 min · 1,208 flights
- Sundays77% on time · p90 45 min · 1,187 flights
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