Flights Detroit → Seattle
DTW → SEA
How long is the flight from Detroit to Seattle?
The flight from Detroit (DTW) to Seattle (SEA) takes 4h 20m on average. That is the median time recorded across 6 scheduled flights on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
The flight route from Detroit to Seattle operates with an average on-time performance of 82%, experiencing a mean delay of 7.8 minutes per flight. Over the course of a year, this route sees approximately 431 flights using various Boeing aircraft models including the 757-300, 757, and 737-900, serving a destination airport that accommodates nearly 52.7 million passengers annually.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Detroit (DTW) → Seattle (SEA) route is operated by Delta Air Lines. Across 1290 flights monitored in recent months, 78% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 13 minutes. The cancellation rate is 1.24%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 21.6/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Seattle the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Detroit the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Seattle: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Detroit (DTW) to Seattle (SEA) heads north-west for about 3,093 km, a flight time of roughly 4h 20m.
Departures from Detroit on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 40% of DTW-SEA flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Detroit the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Seattle it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 1,290 tracked DTW-SEA flights, 78% left on time with an average delay of 13 min and a 1.2% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
Check the risk of a specific flight.
Flexible on this trip? Compare flights
Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delta Air Lines (DL) | 85% | 1 min | 0.8% |
Airlines operating DTW-SEA
Airports
Frequently asked questions about DTW-SEA
The flight from Detroit (DTW) to Seattle (SEA) takes 4h 20m on average. That is the median time recorded across 6 scheduled flights on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the Detroit (DTW) -> Seattle (SEA) route, on-time performance is 78% with an average delay of 13 minutes, based on 1290 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Detroit-Seattle is 1.24% across 1290 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: Delta Air Lines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Seattle, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
