Historical on-time performance
Houston to Washington
1,218 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on HOU–DCA arrive on time 69% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate69%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay50 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled1.3%of scheduled flights
based on 1,056 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- Southwest AirlinesOn-time69%Medianon timep9050 minCancel1.3%Flights1,056
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline26%
- Weather3%
- Air traffic (NAS)32%
- Late aircraft38%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Late aircraft.
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline21%
- Weather50%
- Air traffic (NAS)29%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 14 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 HOU → DCA
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 — 93% on time.
- Mornings93% on time · p90 10 min · 1,029 flights
- Middays73% on time · p90 40 min · 915 flights
- Afternoons64% on time · p90 70 min · 153 flights · limited
- Evenings62% on time · p90 65 min · 1,002 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 71% to 80% on time.
- Tuesdays80% on time · p90 30 min · 468 flights
- Saturdays78% on time · p90 40 min · 321 flights
- Mondays76% on time · p90 40 min · 468 flights
- Thursdays75% on time · p90 45 min · 468 flights
- Wednesdays75% on time · p90 45 min · 468 flights
- Sundays74% on time · p90 35 min · 458 flights
- Fridays71% on time · p90 45 min · 471 flights
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