Houston (IAH) to Los Angeles (LAX)
Flight time
≈ 3h 33m
Bearing
287° W
Houston (IAH) to Los Angeles (LAX) is 1,376 miles (2,215 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies IAH–LAX
Filed traffic dataIn May 2026, United Airlines operated the most departures, one of 7 carriers flying nonstop IAH–LAX; the Boeing 737 MAX 9 was the most common aircraft at 45% of departures; flights ran 89% full.
Departures
847
May 2026
Seats
142,967
both directions
Passengers
127,251
both directions
Load factor
89.0%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies IAH–LAX?
United Airlines operated the most nonstop IAH–LAX departures in May 2026 (608), one of 7 carriers on the route.
- UA
608 departures · 108,741 seats
Share of departures71.8%88.2%
Load
- DL
112 departures · 14,778 seats
Share of departures13.2%92.2%
Load
- F9
62 departures · 14,168 seats
Share of departures7.3%91.9%
Load
- OO
62 departures · 4,712 seats
Share of departures7.3%91.9%
Load
- G4
1 departures · 156 seats
Share of departures0.1%28.2%
Load
- AA
1 departures · 172 seats
Share of departures0.1%88.9%
Load
- NK
1 departures · 240 seats
Share of departures0.1%81.3%
Load
What plane flies IAH–LAX?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 9 flew 45% of IAH–LAX departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 9
377 departures · 88.5% load
44.5% - Boeing 737-900ER
224 departures · 87.6% load
26.5% - Airbus A319
113 departures · 91.5% load
13.3% - Embraer E175
62 departures · 91.9% load
7.3% - Airbus A321
28 departures · 91.8% load
3.3% - Airbus A321neo
27 departures · 91.5% load
3.2% - Airbus A320neo
8 departures · 92.3% load
0.9% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
5 departures · 93.6% load
0.6% - Boeing 737-800
3 departures · 85.7% load
0.4%
How has IAH–LAX traffic changed?
Nonstop IAH–LAX departures rose from 846 in June 2025 to 847 in May 2026.
Monthly nonstop IAH–LAX traffic, trailing 12 months through May 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
June 2025
846 departures · 141,792 passengers
92.5%
Load
July 2025
892 departures · 150,566 passengers
93.1%
Load
August 2025
878 departures · 129,252 passengers
87.9%
Load
September 2025
882 departures · 119,558 passengers
83.4%
Load
October 2025
990 departures · 140,881 passengers
86.1%
Load
November 2025
888 departures · 131,682 passengers
85.6%
Load
December 2025
893 departures · 142,579 passengers
90.0%
Load
January 2026
864 departures · 127,219 passengers
83.5%
Load
February 2026
799 departures · 116,075 passengers
84.9%
Load
March 2026
881 departures · 129,349 passengers
87.7%
Load
April 2026
872 departures · 130,350 passengers
88.0%
Load
May 2026
847 departures · 127,251 passengers
89.0%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
LAX → IAH
85.7% full
425 departures · 61,491 passengers
IAH → LAX
92.4% full
422 departures · 65,760 passengers
Nonstop IAH–LAX 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 Houston (IAH) from Los Angeles (LAX)?
IAH to LAX is 1,376 miles (2,215 km / 1,196 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from IAH to LAX?
A nonstop covers the 1,376-mile great-circle distance in roughly 3h 33m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies IAH–LAX?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 9 flew the largest share of departures (44.5%), followed by the Boeing 737-900ER (26.5%).
What mileage do I earn flying IAH–LAX?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,376-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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