Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

Connect in the morning. The same one-hour layover misses 8% of the time at 8 am and almost half the time at 5 pm.

Nonstops


Delta	DCA	MSN	2h 21m	80%	1.6%	304	Flying now
American	DCA	MSN	2h 23m	69%	6.1%	909	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Madison on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Madison is 1 h behind Washington). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


United Details →	DCA 07:15 → ORD 08:28UA 2638	2h 07m Chicago	ORD 10:35 → MSN 11:49UA 5843 · flown by SkyWest	5h 34m	100%	91%
Delta Details →	DCA 08:29 → BOS 10:14DL 5687 · flown by Republic	2h 54m Boston	BOS 13:08 → MSN 15:03DL 5603 · flown by Republic	7h 34m	98%	83%
American Details →	DCA 06:18 → CLT 07:57AA 1581	3h 15m Charlotte	CLT 11:12 → MSN 12:37AA 5457 · flown by PSA	7h 16m	97%	83%
Delta Details →	DCA 06:00 → ATL 07:48DL 410	1h 32m Atlanta	ATL 09:20 → MSN 10:22DL 2681	5h 24m	98%	82%
American Details →	DCA 08:25 → ORD 10:00AA 4360 · flown by Republic	3h 14m Chicago	ORD 13:14 → MSN 14:19AA 3716 · flown by Envoy	6h 57m	100%	82%
American Details →	DCA 07:40 → ORD 09:00AA 2304	1h 52m Chicago	ORD 10:52 → MSN 12:02AA 3437 · flown by Envoy	5h 22m	93%	81%
Delta Details →	DCA 07:45 → MSP 09:27DL 1493	3h 28m Minneapolis	MSP 12:55 → MSN 14:05DL 4032 · flown by SkyWest	7h 20m	98%	80%
Delta Details →	DCA 06:00 → MSP 07:39DL 1193	2h 33m Minneapolis	MSP 10:12 → MSN 11:20DL 4102 · flown by SkyWest	6h 20m	97%	80%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	DCA 18:25 → ATL 20:30DL 850	1h 02m Atlanta	ATL 21:32 → MSN 22:43DL 2144	5h 18m	69%	55%
United Details →	DCA 16:30 → EWR 18:03UA 4401 · flown by GoJet	56m Newark	EWR 18:59 → MSN 20:39UA 3620 · flown by Republic	5h 09m	54%	37%
American Details →	DCA 17:11 → DFW 19:41AA 1414	55m Dallas-Fort Worth	DFW 20:36 → MSN 22:53AA 876	6h 42m	64%	28%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

EWR · 1h 19m · leaves 06:00 5%

DTW · 55m · leaves 06:00 8%

DFW · 58m · leaves 05:00 9%

Afternoon and evening

DFW · 55m · leaves 17:11 36%

ORD · 53m · leaves 15:30 45%

EWR · 56m · leaves 16:30 46%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.


United UA 2638 DCA 07:15 → ORD American AA 3437 ORD 10:52 → MSN Connection details →	2h 24m	5h 47m	100%	89%
United UA 1061 DCA 08:25 → ORD American AA 3716 ORD 13:14 → MSN Connection details →	3h 31m	6h 57m	99%	79%
JetBlue B6 554 DCA 08:50 → BOS Delta DL 5603 BOS 13:08 → MSN Connection details →	2h 41m	7h 13m	95%	79%

Rank all connections, any airlines →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON