Skip to content
WanderNerd

Route Reliability

Detroit → Washington

DTWDCA · 405 miles · Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport

56
A Little Dicey
WanderNerd Reliability Score
69%
Arrive within 15 minutes
19 min
Average arrival delay
3.8%
Cancelled
2,975
Flights in the data

Data through May 2026.

Who flies it best

Ranked by on-time arrivals. Historical results, not predictions.

  1. 1.Delta Air Lines69%1,750 flights
  2. 2.American Airlines69%1,225 flights

What the data says

Morning flights do better here.

DTW–DCA flights departing between 3–6 AM arrived on time 92% of the time, versus 46% between 6–9 PM.

Thursdays have been rough.

DTW–DCA flights arrived on time 82% of the time on Saturdays and just 65% on Thursdays. That gap is worth planning around.

Not much between Delta Air Lines and American Airlines.

On this route they all land within 69% to 69% on time. Pick on schedule and price.

Keep a backup plan handy.

This route was cancelled 3.8% of the time. Typical for U.S. flights is around 1–2%.

Best historical flights

Ranked by on-time arrivals, minimum 100 flights. Past performance, not a promise.

Top flights by on-time rate

More flights on this route

The breakdown

On-time by weekday
  • Mon67%(423 flights)
  • Tue75%(426 flights)
  • Wed67%(430 flights)
  • Thu65%(431 flights)
  • Fri66%(418 flights)
  • Sat82%(331 flights)
  • Sun65%(388 flights)
On-time by departure window
  • 3–6 AM92%(24 flights)
  • 6–9 AM79%(624 flights)
  • 9 AM–12 PM85%(694 flights)
  • 12–3 PM56%(414 flights)
  • 3–6 PM55%(585 flights)
  • 6–9 PM46%(155 flights)
  • 9 PM–12 AM70%(351 flights)
On-time trend by month
75%
May

Jun 66% → May 75% on time

On-time arrival percentage by month
MonthOn-time percentageFlights
June 202566%214
July 202561%216
August 202580%229
September 202583%245
October 202583%258
November 202559%246
December 202562%228
January 202660%223
February 202659%226
March 202665%251
April 202673%259
May 202675%252

Based on 2,975 historical flights, because apparently we checked. Historical flight data: U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics, June 2025 – May 2026. Data through May 2026. How we calculate this.