Washington (DCA) to Houston (HOU)
Flight time
≈ 3h 14m
Bearing
244° SW
Washington (DCA) to Houston (HOU) is 1,217 miles (1,959 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies DCA–HOU
Filed traffic dataIn May 2026, Southwest Airlines was the only carrier flying nonstop DCA–HOU; the Boeing 737-700 was the most common aircraft at 48% of departures; flights ran 75% full.
Departures
176
May 2026
Seats
27,608
both directions
Passengers
20,578
both directions
Load factor
74.5%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies DCA–HOU?
Southwest Airlines was the only carrier to fly nonstop DCA–HOU in May 2026 (176 departures).
- WN
176 departures · 27,608 seats
Share of departures100.0%74.5%
Load
What plane flies DCA–HOU?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737-700 flew 48% of DCA–HOU departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737-700
84 departures · 72.5% load
47.7% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
75 departures · 76.4% load
42.6% - Boeing 737-800
17 departures · 74.1% load
9.7%
How has DCA–HOU traffic changed?
Nonstop DCA–HOU departures held steady at about 176 a month between June 2025 and May 2026.
Monthly nonstop DCA–HOU traffic, trailing 12 months through May 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
June 2025
176 departures · 22,040 passengers
80.3%
Load
July 2025
177 departures · 22,122 passengers
79.5%
Load
August 2025
177 departures · 20,160 passengers
71.3%
Load
September 2025
171 departures · 15,933 passengers
58.3%
Load
October 2025
171 departures · 18,414 passengers
67.0%
Load
November 2025
164 departures · 15,845 passengers
60.0%
Load
December 2025
182 departures · 19,048 passengers
63.2%
Load
January 2026
168 departures · 12,338 passengers
44.2%
Load
February 2026
156 departures · 11,517 passengers
45.5%
Load
March 2026
179 departures · 21,219 passengers
70.8%
Load
April 2026
174 departures · 18,121 passengers
65.8%
Load
May 2026
176 departures · 20,578 passengers
74.5%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
DCA → HOU
70.0% full
89 departures · 9,552 passengers
HOU → DCA
78.9% full
87 departures · 11,026 passengers
Nonstop DCA–HOU traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through May 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Washington (DCA) from Houston (HOU)?
DCA to HOU is 1,217 miles (1,959 km / 1,058 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from DCA to HOU?
A nonstop covers the 1,217-mile great-circle distance in roughly 3h 14m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies DCA–HOU?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737-700 flew the largest share of departures (47.7%), followed by the Boeing 737 MAX 8 (42.6%).
What mileage do I earn flying DCA–HOU?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,217-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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