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

No nonstop, and no clear pattern: the best connection reaches Dulles on time 4 times in 5.

Best connections, any airlines

Ranked by chance you reach Dulles on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Dulles is 3 h ahead of Oakland). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Delta + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 17:05 → SLC 20:00DL 3903 · flown by SkyWest	3h 59m Salt Lake City	SLC 23:59 → IAD 06:13 +1UA 726	10h 08m	99%	92%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 05:10 → PHX 07:05WN 3066	1h 45m Phoenix	PHX 08:50 → IAD 16:17UA 1873	8h 07m	98%	89%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 08:20 → DEN 11:45WN 3042	2h 08m Denver	DEN 13:53 → IAD 19:22UA 347	8h 02m	100%	87%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 17:30 → SEA 19:30WN 4747	3h 50m Seattle	SEA 23:20 → IAD 07:22 +1UA 264	10h 52m	100%	87%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 09:15 → LAX 10:40WN 4903	2h 03m Los Angeles	LAX 12:43 → IAD 20:48UA 1635	8h 33m	97%	86%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 05:00 → LAS 06:30WN 2325	2h 18m Las Vegas	LAS 08:48 → IAD 16:24UA 1140	8h 24m	98%	85%
Southwest + Alaskatwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 06:20 → SAN 07:55WN 3073	2h 39m San Diego	SAN 10:34 → IAD 18:45AS 506	9h 25m	100%	85%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	OAK 08:05 → SAN 09:40WN 3074	3h 17m San Diego	SAN 12:57 → IAD 21:05UA 444	10h 00m	98%	85%

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

SEA · 47m · leaves 06:22 22%

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.

The table above includes two-ticket connections (marked “two tickets”), held to the 90-minute minimum. One ticket only →

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