Nantucket to Washington

What the Data Says About ACK to DCA

The Nantucket to Washington corridor (ACK → DCA) covers roughly 405 miles and is served by 3 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 1,353 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 79.7% on-time rate with an average delay of 73.9 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 1,353 flights were recorded on this pairing — 59 cancelled (4.4%) and 9 diverted (0.7%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 3 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 1,353 total flights analyzed, the 79.7% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 73.9-minute average delay applies only to flights that actually ran late, so it is not the average wait across all departures — the majority of flights on this route depart on time under the BTS definition of a delay (15+ minutes past schedule).

Looking at recent months, Aug 2021 posted the best performance on this corridor at 93% on-time, while Jul 2023 came in at 73% on-time — a 20-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the ACK to DCA route, the combination of a 79.7% on-time rate, 73.9-minute average delay, 4.4% recent cancellation rate, and 3 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.