Washington to Knoxville

What the Data Says About DCA to TYS

The Washington to Knoxville corridor (DCA → TYS) covers roughly 437 miles and is served by 8 carriers, based on Bureau of Transportation Statistics reporting. Across 4,951 flights in the dataset, this route posts a 76.7% on-time rate with an average delay of 79.3 minutes when flights run late. Over the most recent 24 months of BTS data, 2,106 flights were recorded on this pairing — 75 cancelled (3.6%) and 2 diverted (0.1%). Those baseline metrics tell you what to expect before you book.

Having 8 carriers on the route matters: more carriers generally means more daily schedule options, competitive pricing, and redundancy when flights are cancelled. With 4,951 total flights analyzed, the 76.7% on-time figure is statistically meaningful rather than a small-sample fluke. The 79.3-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, Nov 2024 posted the best performance on this corridor at 86% on-time, while Dec 2025 came in at 51% on-time — a 35-point gap between best and worst recent month. For travelers evaluating the DCA to TYS route, the combination of a 76.7% on-time rate, 79.3-minute average delay, 3.6% recent cancellation rate, and 8 available carriers is the concrete summary of what BTS data shows about reliability on this pairing.