Historical on-time performance
Chicago to Washington
601 miData through Dec 2025Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on MDW–DCA arrive on time 71% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate71%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay50 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled2.2%of scheduled flights
based on 2,102 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- Southwest AirlinesOn-time71%Medianon timep9050 minCancel2.2%Flights2,102
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline25%
- Weather4%
- Air traffic (NAS)39%
- Late aircraft33%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Air traffic (NAS).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly MDW → DCA
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-01 .. 2025-12).
Best time of day
Mornings are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 88% on time.
- Mornings88% on time · p90 15 min · 1,928 flights
- Middays78% on time · p90 30 min · 1,354 flights
- Afternoons70% on time · p90 50 min · 1,040 flights
- Overnights66% on time · p90 60 min · 573 flights
- Evenings62% on time · p90 60 min · 1,435 flights
Best day of week
Saturdays are the most reliable day to fly this route — 81% on time.
- Saturdays81% on time · p90 30 min · 757 flights
- Wednesdays76% on time · p90 40 min · 940 flights
- Mondays76% on time · p90 35 min · 935 flights
- Tuesdays75% on time · p90 40 min · 938 flights
- Thursdays74% on time · p90 45 min · 923 flights
- Fridays73% on time · p90 45 min · 927 flights
- Sundays73% on time · p90 45 min · 910 flights
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