Flights Houston → Detroit
IAH → DTW
How long is the flight from Houston to Detroit?
The flight from Houston (IAH) to Detroit (DTW) takes 2h 20m on average. That is the median time recorded across 4 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 Houston to Detroit operates with an average on-time performance of 80%, with flights typically experiencing a mean delay of 13.5 minutes. Over the course of a year, this route sees approximately 692 flights using various aircraft models including Boeing 717, Airbus A320, Airbus A319, and Boeing 737-700, serving a destination airport that accommodates nearly 28 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 Houston (IAH) → Detroit (DTW) route is operated by Delta Air Lines, Spirit Airlines, United Airlines. Across 1659 flights monitored in recent months, 80% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 13 minutes. The cancellation rate is 1.27%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 23.9/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Detroit the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Houston the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Detroit: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Houston (IAH) to Detroit (DTW) heads north-east for about 1,731 km, a flight time of roughly 2h 20m.
Departures from Houston on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 44% of IAH-DTW flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Houston the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Detroit it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 1,659 tracked IAH-DTW flights, 80% left on time with an average delay of 13 min and a 1.3% 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% |
| United Airlines (UA) | 83% | 5 min | 1.3% |
| Spirit Airlines (NK) | 66% | 19 min | 3.4% |
Airlines operating IAH-DTW
Airports
Frequently asked questions about IAH-DTW
The flight from Houston (IAH) to Detroit (DTW) takes 2h 20m on average. That is the median time recorded across 4 scheduled flights on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the Houston (IAH) -> Detroit (DTW) route, on-time performance is 80% with an average delay of 13 minutes, based on 1659 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Houston-Detroit is 1.27% across 1659 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 3 airlines: Delta Air Lines, Spirit Airlines, United Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Detroit, 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.
