FlightRecord

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through July 2026

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is a tale of two seasons: departures ran 88% on-time in October 2024 but sank to 64% in July 2026. Across the year it averages 75% against a national 78%, over roughly 390 departures a day to 105 destinations.

Departures on-time
75%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
21 min
Arrivals on-time
73%
Cancelled
3.6%
Destinations
105
nonstop
Airlines
12

Plan your departure from DCA

The choices most likely to improve your odds, based on this airport’s historical record.

Best departure time
Around 6 a.m.
92% on-time
Best day to fly
Saturday
80% on-time
Most reliable airline here
United Airlines
84% on-time from DCA
Cancellation risk
3.6%
above the US average
Check routes from DCA ↓Compare nearby airports ↓

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at DCA50%75%100%August 2024: 75% on-time (11,874 flights)75Aug 2024September 2024: 86% on-time (11,546 flights)86October 2024: 88% on-time (12,035 flights)88November 2024: 87% on-time (11,545 flights)87Nov 2024December 2024: 76% on-time (11,346 flights)76January 2025: 79% on-time (11,734 flights)79February 2025: 67% on-time (10,981 flights)67Feb 2025March 2025: 77% on-time (12,336 flights)77April 2025: 80% on-time (12,034 flights)80May 2025: 74% on-time (12,252 flights)74May 2025June 2025: 68% on-time (11,890 flights)68July 2025: 67% on-time (12,192 flights)67August 2025: 78% on-time (12,098 flights)78Aug 2025September 2025: 80% on-time (11,822 flights)80October 2025: 79% on-time (12,273 flights)79November 2025: 74% on-time (11,586 flights)74Nov 2025December 2025: 69% on-time (11,308 flights)69January 2026: 75% on-time (11,858 flights)75February 2026: 70% on-time (10,996 flights)70Feb 2026March 2026: 68% on-time (12,204 flights)68April 2026: 76% on-time (11,802 flights)76May 2026: 76% on-time (12,158 flights)76May 2026June 2026: 72% on-time (11,953 flights)72July 2026: 64% on-time (12,115 flights)64

Best time of day to depart from DCA

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at DCA5 a.m.: 91% on-time (2,211 flights)56 a.m.: 92% on-time (22,014 flights)67 a.m.: 90% on-time (15,666 flights)78 a.m.: 86% on-time (28,196 flights)89 a.m.: 81% on-time (11,419 flights)910 a.m.: 83% on-time (21,909 flights)1011 a.m.: 81% on-time (18,059 flights)1112 p.m.: 78% on-time (15,749 flights)121 p.m.: 74% on-time (18,640 flights)132 p.m.: 72% on-time (18,260 flights)143 p.m.: 69% on-time (19,430 flights)154 p.m.: 65% on-time (13,852 flights)165 p.m.: 64% on-time (25,077 flights)176 p.m.: 61% on-time (12,769 flights)187 p.m.: 65% on-time (19,290 flights)198 p.m.: 65% on-time (14,869 flights)209 p.m.: 66% on-time (3,551 flights)2110 p.m.: 63% on-time (14,896 flights)22scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday74%21 min
Tuesday77%18 min
Wednesday75%20 min
Thursday71%23 min
Friday71%24 min
Saturdaybest80%16 min
Sunday72%23 min

Next: compare the busiest routes from DCA ↓

Busiest routes from DCA

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
DCA → BOS (Boston)9,09075%21 min
DCA → ORD (Chicago)7,04877%21 min
DCA → ATL (Atlanta)6,80178%19 min
DCA → LGA (New York)4,83271%23 min
DCA → MCO (Orlando)4,57976%20 min
DCA → BNA (Nashville)4,35476%17 min
DCA → MIA (Miami)3,95577%20 min
DCA → DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth)3,30179%20 min
DCA → IAH (Houston)3,27781%17 min
DCA → DTW (Detroit)2,97676%21 min
DCA → CLT (Charlotte)2,67378%23 min
DCA → MSP (Minneapolis)2,60078%21 min
DCA → JFK (New York)2,48878%16 min
DCA → PVD (Providence)2,42375%19 min
DCA → STL (St. Louis)2,41474%20 min
DCA → FLL (Fort Lauderdale)2,30772%22 min
DCA → TPA (Tampa)2,24374%21 min
DCA → MDW (Chicago)2,09979%15 min
DCA → CMH (Columbus)2,05278%16 min
DCA → IND (Indianapolis)2,02378%17 min
DCA → RDU (Raleigh/Durham)2,01073%21 min
DCA → MSY (New Orleans)1,94774%18 min
DCA → MCI (Kansas City)1,92973%18 min
DCA → PBI (West Palm Beach/Palm Beach)1,80575%19 min
DCA → CHS (Charleston)1,75172%22 min
DCA → DAL (Dallas)1,73374%18 min
DCA → BDL (Hartford)1,70772%21 min
DCA → CLE (Cleveland)1,61070%24 min
DCA → JAX (Jacksonville)1,46277%18 min
DCA → LAX (Los Angeles)1,45476%20 min
DCA → PIT (Pittsburgh)1,43176%17 min
DCA → HPN (White Plains)1,35963%32 min
DCA → MKE (Milwaukee)1,34777%18 min
DCA → DEN (Denver)1,34677%21 min
DCA → HSV (Huntsville)1,31771%23 min
DCA → MSN (Madison)1,21372%24 min
DCA → ALB (Albany)1,18569%26 min
DCA → PWM (Portland)1,15971%21 min
DCA → BTV (Burlington)1,14473%22 min
DCA → BUF (Buffalo)1,13466%27 min
DCA → MEM (Memphis)1,12674%19 min
DCA → BGR (Bangor)1,11669%25 min
DCA → SAV (Savannah)1,10568%28 min
DCA → SEA (Seattle)1,09277%18 min
DCA → CAE (Columbia)1,09167%25 min
DCA → SFO (San Francisco)1,09076%19 min
DCA → PHX (Phoenix)1,08684%16 min
DCA → MHT (Manchester)1,08271%22 min
DCA → PNS (Pensacola)1,07467%28 min
DCA → HOU (Houston)1,05377%15 min

Compare airlines departing DCA ↓

Where flights into DCA come from

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
BOS (Boston) → DCA9,09276%19 min
ORD (Chicago) → DCA7,04271%24 min
ATL (Atlanta) → DCA6,80070%23 min
LGA (New York) → DCA4,82973%19 min
MCO (Orlando) → DCA4,57970%25 min
BNA (Nashville) → DCA4,35673%19 min
MIA (Miami) → DCA3,95674%18 min
DFW (Dallas/Fort Worth) → DCA3,29974%18 min

Most reliable routes

  1. DCA → EWR90%
  2. DCA → HHH85%
  3. DCA → HYA85%
  4. DCA → PHX84%
  5. DCA → TVC84%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. DCA → AUS53%
  2. DCA → SAT54%
  3. DCA → CAK56%
  4. DCA → AGS58%
  5. DCA → CRW61%

What causes delays at DCA

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT, weighted across routes departing DCA.

  • Late-arriving aircraft50%
  • Airline operations25%
  • National airspace system19%
  • Weather6%

Alternative airports near Washington

Other airports within 120 miles, compared on departure reliability.

AirportDistanceOn-time departuresAvg delay
IAD — Washington Dulles International Airport23 mi83%15 min
BWI — Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport30 mi73%17 min
CHO — Charlottesville Albemarle Airport91 mi80%23 min
MDT — Harrisburg International Airport94 mi79%21 min
RIC — Richmond International Airport94 mi79%17 min

Compare the airport-level record first, then check the exact route you plan to book.

Airline performance at DCA

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
United Airlines84%17 min13,990
Frontier Airlines83%17 min2,146
Republic Airways81%14 min56,104
Envoy Air80%16 min9,588
Delta Air Lines78%21 min19,553
Endeavor Air78%22 min962
American Airlines78%21 min56,894
Alaska Airlines75%16 min4,288
JetBlue Airways74%24 min14,596
SkyWest Airlines73%28 min202
Southwest Airlines70%19 min33,252
PSA Airlines69%27 min84,311

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at DCA?
25% of departures from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-07 and 2026-07, with an average departure delay of 21 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from DCA?
Flights scheduled around 6 a.m. depart on time 92% of the time at DCA, versus 61% around 6 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at DCA?
In this dataset, July 2026 was the weakest month at DCA, with 64% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at DCA?
3.6% of scheduled departures from DCA were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Related guides

Based on 295,886 flights, 2024-07–2026-07. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-09-28.