Flights Philadelphia → Washington
PHL → DCA
How long is the flight from Philadelphia to Washington?
The flight from Philadelphia (PHL) to Washington (DCA) takes about 40 min. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
Route overview
This flight route connects Philadelphia to Washington, operating with a mix of aircraft including the De Havilland Canada DHC-8-300 Dash 8, Airbus A319, and Embraer 190. With an on-time performance rate of 67%, flights experience an average delay of 27.2 minutes, based on a total of 177 recorded flights. The destination airport, which opened in 1938, serves approximately 25,453,581 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 Philadelphia (PHL) → Washington (DCA) route is operated by American Airlines. Across 501 flights monitored in recent months, 69% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 28 minutes. The cancellation rate is 5.79%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 29.1/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Philadelphia the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Washington: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Philadelphia (PHL) to Washington (DCA) heads south-west for about 192 km, a flight time of roughly 40m.
Departures from Philadelphia on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 48% of PHL-DCA flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Philadelphia the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Washington it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 501 tracked PHL-DCA flights, 69% left on time with an average delay of 28 min and a 5.8% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines (AA) | 79% | 6 min | 1.1% |
Airlines operating PHL-DCA
Airports
Frequently asked questions about PHL-DCA
The flight from Philadelphia (PHL) to Washington (DCA) takes about 40 min. This is an estimate based on the distance between the two airports: the real time depends on the aircraft, wind and any stops.
On the Philadelphia (PHL) -> Washington (DCA) route, on-time performance is 69% with an average delay of 28 minutes, based on 501 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Philadelphia-Washington is 5.79% across 501 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: American Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Washington, 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.
