Houston (IAH) to New Orleans (MSY)
Flight time
≈ 1h 24m
Bearing
89° E
Houston (IAH) to New Orleans (MSY) is 304 miles (489 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies IAH–MSY
Filed traffic dataIn July 2026, United Airlines operated the most departures, one of 2 carriers flying nonstop IAH–MSY; the Boeing 737-900 was the most common aircraft at 30% of departures; flights ran 79% full.
Departures
475
July 2026
Seats
73,480
both directions
Passengers
58,255
both directions
Load factor
79.3%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies IAH–MSY?
United Airlines operated the most nonstop IAH–MSY departures in July 2026 (421), one of 2 carriers on the route.
- UA
421 departures · 69,604 seats
Share of departures88.6%79.3%
Load
- YV
54 departures · 3,876 seats
Share of departures11.4%79.0%
Load
What plane flies IAH–MSY?
In July 2026, the Boeing 737-900 flew 30% of IAH–MSY departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737-900
141 departures · 79.2% load
29.7% - Airbus A319
87 departures · 82.0% load
18.3% - Boeing 737-900ER
82 departures · 83.8% load
17.3% - Embraer E175
54 departures · 79.0% load
11.4% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
48 departures · 85.1% load
10.1% - Boeing 737 MAX 9
39 departures · 61.8% load
8.2% - Boeing 737-800
14 departures · 72.9% load
2.9% - Airbus A320
8 departures · 76.1% load
1.7% - Boeing 737-700
2 departures · 91.3% load
0.4%
How has IAH–MSY traffic changed?
Nonstop IAH–MSY departures fell from 541 in August 2025 to 475 in July 2026.
Monthly nonstop IAH–MSY traffic, trailing 12 months through July 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
August 2025
541 departures · 48,656 passengers
62.6%
Load
September 2025
564 departures · 56,016 passengers
63.3%
Load
October 2025
575 departures · 65,905 passengers
72.0%
Load
November 2025
510 departures · 55,227 passengers
67.8%
Load
December 2025
495 departures · 55,014 passengers
73.0%
Load
January 2026
482 departures · 45,247 passengers
64.4%
Load
February 2026
478 departures · 51,195 passengers
71.9%
Load
March 2026
525 departures · 55,145 passengers
69.1%
Load
April 2026
546 departures · 57,742 passengers
65.0%
Load
May 2026
499 departures · 57,295 passengers
76.3%
Load
June 2026
478 departures · 58,442 passengers
79.1%
Load
July 2026
475 departures · 58,255 passengers
79.3%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
IAH → MSY
78.7% full
238 departures · 29,561 passengers
MSY → IAH
79.8% full
237 departures · 28,694 passengers
Nonstop IAH–MSY traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through July 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
New Orleans
US
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
Coordinates
29.99°N, 90.26°W
Hemisphere
N · W
Frequently asked
How far is Houston (IAH) from New Orleans (MSY)?
IAH to MSY is 304 miles (489 km / 264 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from IAH to MSY?
A nonstop covers the 304-mile great-circle distance in roughly 1h 24m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies IAH–MSY?
In July 2026, the Boeing 737-900 flew the largest share of departures (29.7%), followed by the Airbus A319 (18.3%).
What mileage do I earn flying IAH–MSY?
Distance-based programs credit off the 304-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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