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

No clear winner: airlines and hours on this route all land within a few points of 84% on time.

Nonstops


United	IAD	TPA	2h 34m	84%	0.4%	1,124	Flying now
Frontier	IAD	TPA	2h 41m	83%	3.3%	180	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Tampa on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included. Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


American Details →	IAD 05:03 → CLT 06:35AA 5054 · flown by PSA	1h 03m Charlotte	CLT 07:38 → TPA 09:22AA 3320	4h 19m	93%	81%
United Details →	IAD 08:15 → ORD 09:36UA 1775	1h 43m Chicago	ORD 11:19 → TPA 15:12UA 1834	6h 57m	97%	80%
Delta Details →	IAD 06:00 → ATL 07:46DL 2127	3h 28m Atlanta	ATL 11:14 → TPA 12:45DL 1099	6h 45m	98%	79%
Delta Details →	IAD 06:00 → MSP 07:55DL 3996 · flown by SkyWest	2h 09m Minneapolis	MSP 10:04 → TPA 14:12DL 2696	8h 12m	95%	77%
United Details →	IAD 06:33 → EWR 07:52UA 2147	1h 13m Newark	EWR 09:05 → TPA 11:59UA 1576	5h 26m	97%	77%
Delta Details →	IAD 06:00 → DTW 07:40DL 3826 · flown by SkyWest	2h 35m Detroit	DTW 10:15 → TPA 12:53DL 2587	6h 53m	96%	76%
Delta Details →	IAD 08:27 → ATL 10:17DL 3080	2h 29m Atlanta	ATL 12:46 → TPA 14:13DL 1525	5h 45m	97%	76%
United Details →	IAD 10:31 → ORD 11:53UA 1252	2h 37m Chicago	ORD 14:30 → TPA 18:24UA 1057	7h 53m	100%	75%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	IAD 17:29 → DTW 19:07DL 1787	52m Detroit	DTW 19:59 → TPA 22:35DL 1355	5h 10m	71%	52%
Delta Details →	IAD 12:37 → ATL 14:34DL 1444	46m Atlanta	ATL 15:20 → TPA 16:50DL 759	4h 13m	71%	48%
United Details →	IAD 15:39 → ORD 17:02UA 1393	54m Chicago	ORD 17:56 → TPA 21:49UA 2865	6h 10m	49%	33%

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

CLT · 1h 15m · leaves 06:33 13%

ATL · 52m · leaves 06:00 14%

DFW · 1h 00m · leaves 06:14 15%

Afternoon and evening

DFW · 1h 15m · leaves 16:32 23%

DTW · 52m · leaves 17:29 29%

IAH · 59m · leaves 14:53 30%

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 529 IAD 08:21 → RDU Southwest WN 4442 RDU 13:20 → TPA Connection details →	3h 46m	6h 54m	100%	80%
United UA 6116 IAD 08:19 → LGA Delta DL 2106 LGA 12:35 → TPA Connection details →	2h 47m	7h 15m	96%	78%
United UA 6137 IAD 08:35 → DTW Delta DL 1243 DTW 14:05 → TPA Connection details →	3h 51m	8h 12m	96%	78%

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