Washington (DCA) to Houston (IAH)
Flight time
≈ 3h 13m
Bearing
245° SW
Washington (DCA) to Houston (IAH) is 1,206 miles (1,942 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies DCA–IAH
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, United Airlines operated the most departures, one of 4 carriers flying nonstop DCA–IAH; the Bombardier CRJ-900 was the most common aircraft at 24% of departures; flights ran 70% full.
Departures
565
April 2026
Seats
69,873
both directions
Passengers
48,668
both directions
Load factor
69.7%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies DCA–IAH?
United Airlines operated the most nonstop DCA–IAH departures in April 2026 (403), one of 4 carriers on the route.
- UA
United Airlines
403 departures · 57,500 seats
Share of departures71.3%70.9%
Load
- OH
PSA Airlines
139 departures · 10,542 seats
Share of departures24.6%62.2%
Load
- YX
Republic Airways
22 departures · 1,672 seats
Share of departures3.9%74.3%
Load
- AS
Alaska Airlines
1 departures · 159 seats
Share of departures0.2%54.1%
Load
What plane flies DCA–IAH?
In April 2026, the Bombardier CRJ-900 flew 24% of DCA–IAH departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Bombardier CRJ-900
137 departures · 62.3% load
24.3% - Airbus A319
131 departures · 74.3% load
23.2% - Airbus A320
127 departures · 72.4% load
22.5% - Boeing 737-700
64 departures · 77.9% load
11.3% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
55 departures · 64.1% load
9.7% - Embraer E175
22 departures · 74.3% load
3.9% - Boeing 737-800
13 departures · 52.3% load
2.3% - Airbus A321neo
12 departures · 52.7% load
2.1% - Bombardier CRJ-700
2 departures · 53.8% load
0.4% - Boeing 737 MAX 9
2 departures · 84.6% load
0.4%
How has DCA–IAH traffic changed?
Nonstop DCA–IAH departures rose from 408 in May 2025 to 565 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop DCA–IAH traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
408 departures · 44,658 passengers
77.4%
Load
June 2025
383 departures · 42,839 passengers
81.2%
Load
July 2025
399 departures · 45,101 passengers
80.0%
Load
August 2025
412 departures · 43,776 passengers
73.5%
Load
September 2025
545 departures · 43,025 passengers
61.7%
Load
October 2025
581 departures · 51,429 passengers
71.4%
Load
November 2025
525 departures · 46,278 passengers
67.1%
Load
December 2025
543 departures · 51,244 passengers
73.3%
Load
January 2026
527 departures · 40,620 passengers
62.4%
Load
February 2026
506 departures · 42,121 passengers
66.7%
Load
March 2026
553 departures · 52,997 passengers
76.7%
Load
April 2026
565 departures · 48,668 passengers
69.7%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
DCA → IAH
65.0% full
283 departures · 22,494 passengers
IAH → DCA
74.3% full
282 departures · 26,174 passengers
Nonstop DCA–IAH 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 Houston (IAH)?
DCA to IAH is 1,206 miles (1,942 km / 1,048 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from DCA to IAH?
A nonstop covers the 1,206-mile great-circle distance in roughly 3h 13m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies DCA–IAH?
In April 2026, the Bombardier CRJ-900 flew the largest share of departures (24.3%), followed by the Airbus A319 (23.2%).
What mileage do I earn flying DCA–IAH?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,206-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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