Flights Philadelphia → Washington
PHL → IAD
How long is the flight from Philadelphia to Washington?
The flight from Philadelphia (PHL) to Washington (IAD) takes 28 min 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 Philadelphia to Washington operates with an average on-time performance of 88%, with flights typically experiencing a mean delay of 5.3 minutes. Over the course of a year, this route sees 237 total flights using Embraer RJ145 aircraft, serving a destination airport that handles approximately 21,376,896 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 (IAD) route is operated by United Airlines. Across 589 flights monitored in recent months, 84% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 13 minutes. The cancellation rate is 2.55%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 22.9/100 (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 (IAD) heads south-west for about 216 km, a flight time of roughly 28m.
Departures from Philadelphia on this leg cluster in the morning window: about 58% of PHL-IAD 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 589 tracked PHL-IAD flights, 84% left on time with an average delay of 13 min and a 2.5% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines (UA) | 83% | 5 min | 1.3% |
Airlines operating PHL-IAD
Airports
Frequently asked questions about PHL-IAD
The flight from Philadelphia (PHL) to Washington (IAD) takes 28 min 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 Philadelphia (PHL) -> Washington (IAD) route, on-time performance is 84% with an average delay of 13 minutes, based on 589 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Philadelphia-Washington is 2.55% across 589 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: United 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.
