ATL to IAD flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Washington Dulles International Airport · 534 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at ATL or IAD right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Atlanta (ATL) to Washington (IAD) arrived on time 77% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 2% were cancelled, and 10% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (82% on time); Frontier Airlines was the least (63%).
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (97% on time); around 10pm did worst (64%).
- Thursday was the most reliable day to fly (81% on time) and Friday the least (71%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (42%).
Which airline is most on time from ATL to IAD?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republic AirwaysRegional airline operating flights for American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express. | 86% | 0.0% | 8 min | 0.0% | 21 |
| United Airlines | 82% | 0.9% | 15 min | 8.1% | 1,094 |
| Delta Air Lines | 78% | 2.7% | 18 min | 8.2% | 2,224 |
| Frontier Airlines | 63% | 1.7% | 31 min | 17.4% | 653 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am97%123 flights
- 7am84%266 flights
- 8am87%129 flights
- 9am85%529 flights
- 10am83%160 flights
- 12pm84%271 flights
- 1pm75%106 flights
- 2pm77%628 flights
- 3pm64%168 flights
- 4pm67%240 flights
- 5pm74%90 flights
- 6pm79%70 flights
- 7pm74%559 flights
- 9pm65%208 flights
- 10pm64%373 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday76%2.1% cancelled
- Tuesday79%2.0% cancelled
- Wednesday80%0.2% cancelled
- Thursday81%0.7% cancelled
- Friday71%2.3% cancelled
- Saturday80%2.1% cancelled
- Sunday72%4.6% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)42%
- Late-arriving aircraft34%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion18%
- Extreme weather5%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)60%
- Extreme weather38%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion1%
- Security0%
ATL to IAD: common questions
- How often are ATL to IAD flights on time?
- 77% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Atlanta to Washington cancelled?
- 2.0% of scheduled flights were cancelled (81 of 3,992).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 19 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 78 min behind schedule on average, and 9.7% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at ATL?
- Flights on this route spent 19 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: IAD to ATL — 79% on time
More flights from Atlanta
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: ATL → IAD, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.