DCA to STL flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to St. Louis Lambert International Airport · 719 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at DCA or STL right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Washington (DCA) to St. Louis (STL) arrived on time 73% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 2.4% were cancelled, and 9% arrived an hour or more late.
- Republic Airways was the most punctual airline here (78% on time); PSA Airlines was the least (68%).
- Departures scheduled around 8am did best (84% on time); around 8pm did worst (55%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (78% on time) and Friday the least (67%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (52%).
Which airline is most on time from DCA to STL?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Envoy AirRegional airline operating American Eagle flights. | 90% | 0.0% | 4 min | 0.0% | 21 |
| Republic AirwaysRegional airline operating flights for American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express. | 78% | 4.5% | 13 min | 7.1% | 222 |
| Southwest Airlines | 75% | 1.4% | 16 min | 7.3% | 1,402 |
| American Airlines | 68% | 2.3% | 32 min | 15.8% | 175 |
| PSA AirlinesRegional airline operating American Eagle flights. | 68% | 4.2% | 26 min | 13.9% | 594 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 7am84%116 flights
- 8am84%489 flights
- 11am82%61 flights
- 12pm83%382 flights
- 1pm67%84 flights
- 2pm69%341 flights
- 3pm69%221 flights
- 6pm61%358 flights
- 7pm69%181 flights
- 8pm55%136 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday75%3.7% cancelled
- Tuesday78%1.9% cancelled
- Wednesday77%2.1% cancelled
- Thursday73%0.8% cancelled
- Friday67%1.9% cancelled
- Saturday78%1.4% cancelled
- Sunday67%5.3% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft52%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)31%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion11%
- Extreme weather5%
- Security1%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather73%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion17%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)8%
- Security2%
DCA to STL: common questions
- How often are DCA to STL flights on time?
- 73% 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 Washington to St. Louis cancelled?
- 2.4% of scheduled flights were cancelled (59 of 2,414).
- 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 68 min behind schedule on average, and 9.4% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at DCA?
- Flights on this route spent 20 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: STL to DCA — 73% on time
More flights from Washington
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: DCA → STL, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.