Route reliability
Seattle (SEA) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): which airline is most on time?
On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Seattle, WA (SEA) to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW), September 2025 to August 2026.
Seattle, WADallas/Fort Worth, TX
Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026
SEA to DFW
Seattle, WA to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
- On time
- 75.9%vs 75.6% U.S. average About average
- Cancelled
- 1.7%vs 1.9% U.S. average About average
- 60+ min late
- 6.1%vs 8.1% U.S. average Better than average
- Scheduled flights
- 5,228in 12 months4 airlines
- Most reliable airline
- Alaska Airlines79.6% on time · 1,758 flights
On time about as often as the U.S. average, with a typical cancellation rate.
Airlines on this route
Ranked by on-time arrival
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | 60+ min late | Avg delay when late | Diverted | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Alaska Airlines Most reliable | 79.6% | 0.9% | 3.2% | 43 min | 0.7% | 1,758 |
| 2. Delta Air Lines | 74.9% | 1.5% | 7.8% | 75 min | 0.7% | 720 |
| 3. American Airlines | 74.0% | 2.2% | 7.6% | 94 min | 1.1% | 2,736 |
| Frontier Airlines | Insufficient sample (fewer than 50 flights) | 14 | ||||
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
Alaska Airlines has the strongest record on this route.
- Alaska Airlines had the best on-time record from Seattle (SEA) to Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW): 79.6% of its 1,758 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 74.0% for American Airlines.
- Frontier Airlines also flew this route but with fewer than 50 reported flights, too few to rate.
- 1.7% of flights on this route were cancelled (about 1 in 59), about the same as the U.S. average of 1.9%.
- 6.1% of flights, about 1 in 16, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 75 min.
- Overall, 75.9% of flights on this route arrived on time, about the same as the U.S. average of 75.6%.
- Over the last 3 years, February was the most reliable month on this route (83.9% on time) and June the least reliable (66.1%).
- Cancellations peaked in January, when 6.6% of flights were cancelled.
- Flights scheduled to depart 6 am to 7 am were the most punctual (88.5% on time); flights scheduled to depart 11 pm to midnight were the least (66.0%).
- In the other direction, Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to Seattle (SEA), 69.7% of flights were on time and 1.8% were cancelled. Compare airlines DFW to SEA.
Best and worst months to fly SEA to DFW
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 75.9%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 73.7% | 1,122 |
| February | 83.9% | 1,002 |
| March | 79.7% | 1,144 |
| April | 74.9% | 1,149 |
| May | 72.0% | 1,353 |
| June | 66.1% | 1,436 |
| July | 68.0% | 1,526 |
| August | 69.2% | 1,479 |
| September | 76.2% | 1,301 |
| October | 80.2% | 1,352 |
| November | 77.3% | 1,197 |
| December | 78.6% | 1,232 |
| Airline | Best month | Worst month |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | February (82.3%) | June (67.1%) |
| Delta Air Lines | February (85.8%) | June (65.8%) |
| American Airlines | February (84.6%) | June (65.8%) |
Month by month, last 12 months
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 79.3% | 430 |
| Oct 2025 | 81.4% | 442 |
| Nov 2025 | 76.6% | 411 |
| Dec 2025 | 73.8% | 455 |
| Jan 2026 | 69.0% | 397 |
| Feb 2026 | 87.2% | 344 |
| Mar 2026 | 82.4% | 386 |
| Apr 2026 | 83.6% | 414 |
| May 2026 | 74.9% | 482 |
| Jun 2026 | 67.4% | 491 |
| Jul 2026 | 70.7% | 501 |
| Aug 2026 | 70.3% | 475 |
Best and worst departure times
Share of scheduled flights on time
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Departing before 6 am | 86.5% | 628 |
| Departing 6 am to 7 am | 88.5% | 260 |
| Departing 7 am to 8 am | 85.9% | 482 |
| Departing 8 am to 9 am | 84.5% | 238 |
| Departing 9 am to 10 am | 76.5% | 494 |
| Departing 10 am to 11 am | 70.5% | 444 |
| Departing 11 am to noon | 66.2% | 414 |
| Departing noon to 1 pm | 73.3% | 135 |
| Departing 1 pm to 2 pm | 74.1% | 294 |
| Departing 2 pm to 3 pm | 66.5% | 197 |
| Departing 3 pm to 4 pm | 67.7% | 223 |
| Departing 4 pm to 5 pm | Insufficient sample | 1 |
| Departing 5 pm to 6 pm | 71.8% | 858 |
| Departing 6 pm to 7 pm | 75.4% | 126 |
| Departing 10 pm to 11 pm | 87.8% | 90 |
| Departing 11 pm to midnight | 66.0% | 344 |
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 Seattle, WA (SEA) to Dallas/Fort Worth, TX (DFW), 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.