Flights London → Cape Town
LHR → CPT
How long is the flight from London to Cape Town?
The flight from London (LHR) to Cape Town (CPT) takes 11h 26m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
The flight route from London to Cape Town operates with a high level of punctuality, with 86% of flights arriving on time. Over the course of a year, an average delay of 29.3 minutes is experienced across seven total flights using Boeing aircraft models including the 747-400 and 777, serving a destination airport that handles over ten million passengers annually.
The London (LHR) → Cape Town (CPT) route is operated by American Airlines, British Airways. Across 7 flights monitored in recent months, 86% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 29 minutes. The cancellation rate is 0.00%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 16.1/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Cape Town the average ATFM delay is 2.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from London the average ATFM delay is 1.8 minutes.
Heading to Cape Town: what to expect in this direction
Flying from London (LHR) to Cape Town (CPT) heads south for about 9,682 km, a flight time of roughly 11h 26m.
Departures from London on this leg cluster in the evening window: about 100% of LHR-CPT flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing London the average ATFM delay is 1.8 min (atfm); arriving into Cape Town it is 2.5 min (atfm).
Across 7 tracked LHR-CPT flights, 86% left on time with an average delay of 29 min and a 0.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines (AA) | 79% | 6 min | 1.1% |
| British Airways (BA) | 66% | 31 min | 1.3% |
Airlines operating LHR-CPT
Airports
Frequently asked questions about LHR-CPT
The flight from London (LHR) to Cape Town (CPT) takes 11h 26m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the London (LHR) -> Cape Town (CPT) route, on-time performance is 86% with an average delay of 29 minutes, based on 7 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on London-Cape Town is 0.00% across 7 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 2 airlines: American Airlines, British Airways.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Cape Town, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
The London-Cape Town route is about 9,682 km: for a cancellation (with less than 14 days' notice), a delay over 3 hours, or denied boarding, UK261 compensation is £520, barring extraordinary circumstances.
