Washington (DCA) to Denver (DEN)
Flight time
≈ 3h 45m
Bearing
282° W
Washington (DCA) to Denver (DEN) is 1,472 miles (2,369 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
Look up a route, or build a trip
Change the airports, or add stops for a multi-leg trip.
What actually flies DCA–DEN
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, Frontier Airlines operated the most departures, one of 2 carriers flying nonstop DCA–DEN; the Airbus A320neo was the most common aircraft at 60% of departures; flights ran 89% full.
Departures
216
April 2026
Seats
41,092
both directions
Passengers
36,500
both directions
Load factor
88.8%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies DCA–DEN?
Frontier Airlines operated the most nonstop DCA–DEN departures in April 2026 (156), one of 2 carriers on the route.
- F9
Frontier Airlines
156 departures · 29,092 seats
Share of departures72.2%88.8%
Load
- UA
United Airlines
60 departures · 12,000 seats
Share of departures27.8%88.8%
Load
What plane flies DCA–DEN?
In April 2026, the Airbus A320neo flew 60% of DCA–DEN departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Airbus A320neo
129 departures · 88.5% load
59.7% - Airbus A321neo
75 departures · 89.3% load
34.7% - Airbus A320
10 departures · 92.7% load
4.6% - Airbus A321
2 departures · 75.9% load
0.9%
How has DCA–DEN traffic changed?
Nonstop DCA–DEN departures fell from 244 in May 2025 to 216 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop DCA–DEN traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
244 departures · 42,134 passengers
88.6%
Load
June 2025
216 departures · 36,951 passengers
90.1%
Load
July 2025
221 departures · 36,849 passengers
87.9%
Load
August 2025
231 departures · 38,259 passengers
85.7%
Load
September 2025
223 departures · 37,127 passengers
84.0%
Load
October 2025
230 departures · 39,044 passengers
85.8%
Load
November 2025
224 departures · 36,312 passengers
82.9%
Load
December 2025
228 departures · 38,158 passengers
85.5%
Load
January 2026
222 departures · 33,754 passengers
79.5%
Load
February 2026
208 departures · 32,307 passengers
81.8%
Load
March 2026
227 departures · 36,753 passengers
85.5%
Load
April 2026
216 departures · 36,500 passengers
88.8%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
DCA → DEN
88.7% full
108 departures · 18,233 passengers
DEN → DCA
88.9% full
108 departures · 18,267 passengers
Nonstop DCA–DEN traffic has been filed with the US DOT since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through April 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work). The DOT publishes roughly three months in arrears.
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Washington (DCA) from Denver (DEN)?
DCA to DEN is 1,472 miles (2,369 km / 1,279 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from DCA to DEN?
A nonstop covers the 1,472-mile great-circle distance in roughly 3h 45m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies DCA–DEN?
In April 2026, the Airbus A320neo flew the largest share of departures (59.7%), followed by the Airbus A321neo (34.7%).
What mileage do I earn flying DCA–DEN?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,472-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
Keep exploring
Every route below is its own page.
Other routes from DCA
Popular long-haul routes