Route Reliability

Route reliability

Dallas (DAL) to Houston (HOU): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Dallas, TX (DAL) to Houston, TX (HOU), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Dallas, TXHouston, TX

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

DAL to HOU

Dallas, TX to Houston, TX

On time
73.3%vs 75.6% U.S. average Worse than average
Cancelled
2.0%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
60+ min late
6.9%vs 8.1% U.S. average Better than average
Scheduled flights
4,044in 12 months1 airline
Only rated airline
Southwest Airlines73.3% on time · 4,044 flights

On time less often than the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from DAL to HOU, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. Southwest Airlines 73.3% 2.0% 6.9% 54 min 0.1% 4,044

On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.

What this means

How DAL to HOU compares.

  • Southwest Airlines was the only airline with enough flights on this route to rate (4,044 flights). 73.3% of them arrived within 15 minutes of schedule.
  • 2.0% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 50), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 6.9% of flights, about 1 in 14, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 54 min.
  • Overall, 73.3% of flights on this route arrived on time, 2.3 points lower than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, February was the most reliable month on this route (84.3% on time) and May the least reliable (61.7%).
  • Cancellations peaked in January, when 6.5% of flights were cancelled.
  • Flights scheduled to depart 6 am to 7 am were the most punctual (93.3% on time); flights scheduled to depart 10 pm to 11 pm were the least (50.5%).
  • In the other direction, Houston (HOU) to Dallas (DAL), 79.7% of flights were on time and 2.1% were cancelled. Compare airlines HOU to DAL.

Best and worst months to fly DAL to HOU

Jan 80.4%
Feb 84.3%
Mar 70.2%
Apr 72.2%
May 61.7%
Jun 64.0%
Jul 66.5%
Aug 75.6%
Sep 81.5%
Oct 79.3%
Nov 79.9%
Dec 81.4%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 73.3%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 80.4% 1,031
February 84.3% 963
March 70.2% 1,083
April 72.2% 1,043
May 61.7% 1,063
June 64.0% 1,009
July 66.5% 1,026
August 75.6% 1,033
September 81.5% 1,009
October 79.3% 1,076
November 79.9% 983
December 81.4% 981

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 82.5%
Oct 80.2%
Nov 69.3%
Dec 82.5%
Jan 82.7%
Feb 83.0%
Mar 60.4%
Apr 69.7%
May 63.1%
Jun 61.9%
Jul 74.0%
Aug 71.9%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 82.5% 332
Oct 2025 80.2% 353
Nov 2025 69.3% 323
Dec 2025 82.5% 314
Jan 2026 82.7% 341
Feb 2026 83.0% 323
Mar 2026 60.4% 364
Apr 2026 69.7% 346
May 2026 63.1% 350
Jun 2026 61.9% 328
Jul 2026 74.0% 335
Aug 2026 71.9% 335

Best and worst departure times

6a 93.3%
7a 90.6%
8a 82.5%
9a 85.6%
10a 85.8%
11a 79.0%
12p 72.2%
1p 65.7%
2p 74.1%
3p 60.5%
4p 68.4%
5p 62.2%
6p 53.8%
7p 66.0%
8p 61.9%
9p 46.9%
10p 50.5%
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at DAL, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing 6 am to 7 am 93.3% 357
Departing 7 am to 8 am 90.6% 308
Departing 8 am to 9 am 82.5% 291
Departing 9 am to 10 am 85.6% 153
Departing 10 am to 11 am 85.8% 275
Departing 11 am to noon 79.0% 315
Departing noon to 1 pm 72.2% 180
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 65.7% 204
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 74.1% 251
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 60.5% 223
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 68.4% 323
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 62.2% 209
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 53.8% 197
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 66.0% 282
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 61.9% 273
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 46.9% 98
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm 50.5% 105
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

Sources & data dates

Source
U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
Period
September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
Data through
August 2026
Processed
2026-11-03
Scope
Nonstop scheduled flights from Dallas, TX (DAL) to Houston, TX (HOU), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
Method
Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.

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