Route profile
LAX→SEA
Flight reliability, delays and best times to fly from Los Angeles to Seattle, 954 miles.
Right now
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Route reliability
July 2023 – July 2026
Better than 90% of comparable major US routes (4,598 compared)
Calculated from 23,177 flights. How this is calculated
LAX → SEA arrives on time 84.8% of the time; the return trip, SEA → LAX, arrives on time 82.5% of the time, a 2.4-point gap between the two directions of the same city pair.
LAX → SEA spends 31.7 minutes on the ground on a 954-mile trip: 19.2 minutes from pushback to wheels-up at LAX and 12.6 minutes from touchdown to gate at SEA.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026
What stands out
This route has stayed remarkably steady year over year, a smaller swing than 92% of 5,368 comparable routes.
85.3% on time over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), against 84.8% in the 12 months before (2024-08 to 2025-07), virtually unchanged.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Ranked against every other route with the same kind of figure and at least 5,368 in the comparison.
Why LAX → SEA flights are cancelled
July 2023 – July 2026
LAX → SEA cancelled 195 of 23,177 scheduled flights — about 1 in every 119. The reason filed most often was the airline, 77.4% of the cancellations coded on this route — about 1 in every 153 scheduled flights.
Share of cancellations
Of 195 cancelled departures carrying a reason code.
What each reason means
Crew, maintenance, aircraft cleaning, baggage or fueling: what BTS counts as within the carrier’s own control.
151 cancellations, 77.4% of the total.
Conditions the carrier judged severe enough to stop the flight: a blizzard, a hurricane, a line of thunderstorms.
40 cancellations, 20.5% of the total.
Airport capacity, air traffic control flow programs, heavy traffic and ordinary bad weather. A system decision, not the airline’s.
4 cancellations, 2.1% of the total.
A terminal evacuation, a security breach, screening equipment failure, or screening queues over 29 minutes.
0 cancellations, 0.0% of the total.
Reason codes are the operating airline’s own filing with US DOT, not an independent finding of fault. Ordinary bad weather is filed under air traffic, so weather’s full share is larger than its bar.
195 coded cancellations were recorded on LAX → SEA; the section appears from 50.
When it goes wrong
July 2023 – July 2026
26 min late
against a median of 10 min early
Percentiles over 23,177 operations; cancelled and diverted flights are counted separately.
Will your connection be tight enough?
Layovers at SEA after arriving from LAX.
| Connection time | Chance of missing | Reads as |
|---|---|---|
| 30 min | 30% | High risk |
| 45 min | 15% | Some risk |
| 60 min | 8.6% | Some risk |
| 90 min | 4.1% | Low risk |
| 120 min | 2.5% | Low risk |
This is one leg of a connection. Gate changes and the next flight's own schedule matter too. And a connection can fail before delay is even the question — this route cancels 0.84% of the time and diverts 0.08% of the time, which a late arrival never shows up in.
Chance of missing is the share of 22,964 arrivals on this route that landed later than the connection time less 30 minutes to reach the next gate.
The worst tenth of arrivals on this route land at least 26 minutes late (90th-percentile gate arrival delay), over 23,177 operations.
Any other layover length: connection checker.
Best time to fly
LAX → SEA flights departing 5–9 AM arrived on time 89.1% of the time, against 80.3% for 6–9 PM departures, a gap of 8.8 percentage points.
By day and hour
On-time arrival rate for each weekday and scheduled departure hour, in local time at the departure airport (LAX).
Hour of departure matters more than day of the week: hourly averages sit a typical 3.8 points from the route-wide rate, weekday averages 2.6 points.
| Hour | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
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On-time rate, % · stronger color, fewer on time
- 72–75
- 76–79
- 80–83
- 84–87
- 88–91
- 92–95
- 96–99
- Fewer than 120 flights, not scored
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · On time is arrival within 15 minutes of schedule. Cells round to whole percentages; the table shows one decimal.
No slot is named best or worst: too few reach 500 flights. Departures before 6 AM and after 10 PM (16 flights) are not drawn: no slot in those hours has enough flights to score.
View as tableHide table
| Hour | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 AM–7 AM | 96.7% on time153 flights | 110 flights, too few to score | 102 flights, too few to score | 91.8% on time147 flights | 92.5% on time149 flights | 101 flights, too few to score | 91.5% on time120 flights |
| 7 AM–8 AM | 91.1% on time274 flights | 90.8% on time251 flights | 90.6% on time257 flights | 92.3% on time275 flights | 90.4% on time273 flights | 94.0% on time254 flights | 90.2% on time288 flights |
| 8 AM–9 AM | 78.8% on time220 flights | 86.7% on time167 flights | 85.0% on time175 flights | 83.3% on time205 flights | 81.2% on time214 flights | 84.1% on time153 flights | 82.1% on time186 flights |
| 9 AM–10 AM | 89.9% on time301 flights | 89.3% on time304 flights | 87.3% on time302 flights | 87.0% on time303 flights | 87.4% on time290 flights | 88.5% on time245 flights | 85.9% on time301 flights |
| 10 AM–11 AM | 83.6% on time153 flights | 90.3% on time146 flights | 93.3% on time136 flights | 84.8% on time152 flights | 84.6% on time137 flights | 91 flights, too few to score | 116 flights, too few to score |
| 11 AM–12 PM | 83.0% on time332 flights | 86.9% on time323 flights | 85.2% on time319 flights | 87.3% on time328 flights | 81.1% on time321 flights | 85.7% on time259 flights | 83.7% on time317 flights |
| 12 PM–1 PM | 78 flights, too few to score | 84 flights, too few to score | 81 flights, too few to score | 79 flights, too few to score | 84 flights, too few to score | 56 flights, too few to score | 90 flights, too few to score |
| 1 PM–2 PM | 88.0% on time194 flights | 85.9% on time185 flights | 94.7% on time190 flights | 85.1% on time197 flights | 82.0% on time180 flights | 85.9% on time187 flights | 84.9% on time188 flights |
| 2 PM–3 PM | 87.0% on time218 flights | 90.1% on time212 flights | 93.6% on time205 flights | 83.5% on time218 flights | 82.0% on time229 flights | 88.7% on time196 flights | 82.6% on time221 flights |
| 3 PM–4 PM | 80.0% on time216 flights | 89.4% on time207 flights | 89.1% on time187 flights | 81.6% on time230 flights | 78.7% on time190 flights | 85.2% on time184 flights | 75.3% on time233 flights |
| 4 PM–5 PM | 85.2% on time139 flights | 107 flights, too few to score | 114 flights, too few to score | 89.8% on time138 flights | 83.3% on time135 flights | 90.8% on time143 flights | 77.6% on time157 flights |
| 5 PM–6 PM | 84.7% on time318 flights | 89.1% on time303 flights | 86.8% on time305 flights | 85.8% on time326 flights | 80.5% on time317 flights | 90.1% on time284 flights | 78.9% on time313 flights |
| 6 PM–7 PM | 79.8% on time194 flights | 83.0% on time153 flights | 73.7% on time156 flights | 76.8% on time186 flights | 78.8% on time170 flights | 81.3% on time145 flights | 72.5% on time189 flights |
| 7 PM–8 PM | 80.1% on time429 flights | 83.6% on time367 flights | 83.2% on time366 flights | 76.5% on time413 flights | 78.0% on time426 flights | 86.9% on time381 flights | 77.0% on time427 flights |
| 8 PM–9 PM | 89.7% on time139 flights | 81 flights, too few to score | 106 flights, too few to score | 76.1% on time143 flights | 75.8% on time126 flights | 101 flights, too few to score | 83.2% on time139 flights |
| 9 PM–10 PM | 86.4% on time208 flights | 82 flights, too few to score | 95 flights, too few to score | 83.4% on time209 flights | 75.4% on time208 flights | 78.5% on time137 flights | 72.9% on time217 flights |
By departure window
By departure hour
- 12 AM to 5 AM: too few flights to score
- 6 AM: 93.8% on time from 882 flights
- 7 AM: 91.3% on time from 1,872 flights
- 8 AM: 82.8% on time from 1,320 flights
- 9 AM: 87.9% on time from 2,046 flights
- 10 AM: 86.9% on time from 931 flights
- 11 AM: 84.7% on time from 2,199 flights
- 12 PM: 81.6% on time from 552 flights
- 1 PM: 86.7% on time from 1,321 flights
- 2 PM: 86.6% on time from 1,499 flights
- 3 PM: 82.5% on time from 1,447 flights
- 4 PM: 86.6% on time from 933 flights
- 5 PM: 85.1% on time from 2,166 flights
- 6 PM: 77.8% on time from 1,193 flights
- 7 PM: 80.6% on time from 2,809 flights
- 8 PM: 82.8% on time from 835 flights
- 9 PM: 80.4% on time from 1,156 flights
- 10 PM to 11 PM: too few flights to score
Why LAX → SEA runs late
July 2023 – July 2026
crew, maintenance, boarding and fueling, all within the carrier’s control
the inbound aircraft was late, so this flight started late
airspace and airport capacity, including weather-driven flow control
weather severe enough to stop this flight specifically
screening or terminal security incidents
Share of the delay minutes US DOT attributed to each cause for LAX → SEA. Only delays of 15 minutes or more are attributed.
How this route holds up in bad weather
July 2023 – July 2026
Bad weather raises cancellations by a similar amount at both ends of LAX to SEA: 1.3 times the normal rate at LAX and 1.9 times at SEA. Cancelled in bad weather against normal hours: LAX 1.0% against 0.8%, SEA 1.5% against 0.8%. Flights that did leave SEA in bad weather arrived on time 75.4% of the time, against 79.3% in normal hours.
Bad weather and normal hours at the airports
Scheduled departures, July 2023 – July 2026| Departures from | LAX | SEA |
|---|---|---|
| Cancelled in bad weather | 1.0% | 1.5% |
| Cancelled in normal hours | 0.8% | 0.8% |
| Arrived on time, bad weather | 78.9% | 75.4% |
| Arrived on time, normal hours | 81.4% | 79.3% |
| Departures in bad weather | 60,639 | 43,416 |
Spirit Airlines (1.8% cancelled against 1.0% for the other carriers at LAX) and Frontier Airlines (3.1% cancelled against 1.0% for the other carriers at LAX) cancelled more departures from LAX in bad weather than the other carriers there did in the same months. None of the route’s other carriers was clearly better.
This route’s airlines in bad weather at LAX
All departures from LAX| Airline | Bad-weather departures | Cancelled | Other carriers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delta Air Lines | 11,619 | 0.9%about level | 1.0% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 11,169 | 1.0%about level | 1.0% |
| JetBlue | 2,801 | 1.0%about level | 1.0% |
| Alaska Airlines | 2,917 | 1.1%about level | 1.0% |
| United Airlines | 8,785 | 1.2%about level | 1.0% |
| Spirit Airlines | 2,995 | 1.8%above the others | 1.0% |
| Frontier Airlines | 1,064 | 3.1%above the others | 1.0% |
These are airport figures, not route figures: every scheduled departure from LAX and SEA, to any destination, in hours the weather report called bad. The airline rows count each carrier’s departures from LAX on every route.
Weather source and limits. In full: LAX (airlines), SEA, What Weather Costs Each Airport, Who Cancels More When the Weather Turns, Airports That Change Places When Weather Turns.
Airlines on this route
Carriers with at least 200 flights, by the airline that operated each one.
| Carrier | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Median delay | Severe |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | 10,498 | 83.2% | 1.23% | -7 min | 3.9% |
| Delta Air Lines | 6,850 | 87.9% | 0.41% | -15 min | 4.1% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 3,046 | 84.3% | 0.39% | -9 min | 4.9% |
| United Airlines | 1,780 | 85.0% | 0.62% | -8 min | 4.3% |
| Frontier Airlines | 474 | 82.7% | 2.53% | -11 min | 5.6% |
| Spirit Airlines | 274 | 85.7% | 0.36% | -15 min | 6.6% |
| JetBlue | 240 | 76.1% | 0.83% | -5 min | 7.1% |
Alaska Airlines flew 45.3% of the 23,162 flights listed. Frontier Airlines cancelled 2.53% of its flights here against 0.36% for Spirit Airlines.
Delta Air Lines arrived on time 11.8 percentage points more often than JetBlue on this route.
Other ways to fly Los Angeles to Seattle
Airport pairs in the same two city markets, as the DOT defines them.
| Route | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Median delay | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAX→SEA this route Los Angeles to Seattle | 23,177 | 84.8% | 0.84% | -10 min | 82 |
| SNA→SEA Santa Ana to Seattle | 12,459 | 85.5% | 1.11% | -10 min | 81 |
Flying to SEA from the Los Angeles area? Compare LAX, SNA, BUR, ONT for SEA, with the same test for what counts as a real difference.
Flights on this route
Flight numbers with at least 600 operations here and still on the schedule.
| Flight | Scheduled | Operations | On time |
|---|---|---|---|
| AS1301 Alaska Airlines | 5:40 PM | 1,006 | 82.3% |
| DL1714 Delta Air Lines | 9:35 AM | 980 | 93.4% |
| DL1045 Delta Air Lines | 11:45 AM | 922 | 87.4% |
| DL1551 Delta Air Lines | 7:59 PM | 796 | 81.2% |
| DL2606 Delta Air Lines | 2:00 PM | 785 | 87.2% |
| DL2640 Delta Air Lines | 5:15 PM | 750 | 84.3% |
| AS1305 Alaska Airlines | 6:55 PM | 698 | 73.7% |
| AS1317 Alaska Airlines | 10:00 AM | 644 | 82.2% |
| DL2980 Delta Air Lines | 7:00 AM | 604 | 93.0% |
DL1714 (9:35 AM) arrived on time 93.4% of the time, 19.7 points more often than AS1305 (6:55 PM) at 73.7%.
Weekly and seasonal patterns
By day of week
Tuesday is historically the most reliable day and Sunday the least, a gap of 7.0 percentage points.
By month
- Jan: 85.4%
- Feb: 87.2%
- Mar: 83.3%
- Apr: 87.2%
- May: 84.0%
- Jun: 79.3%
- Jul: 81.1%
- Aug: 82.9%
- Sep: 87.9%
- Oct: 88.0%
- Nov: 90.3%
- Dec: 83.8%
June is historically the weakest month and November the strongest, a spread of 11.0 percentage points.
Reliability over time
July 2023 – July 2026
- July 2023: 85.7% from 738 flights
- August 2023: 85.5% from 734 flights
- September 2023: 85.4% from 701 flights
- October 2023: 85.7% from 698 flights
- November 2023: 90.9% from 609 flights
- December 2023: 84.3% from 553 flights
- January 2024: 83.4% from 528 flights
- February 2024: 88.2% from 507 flights
- March 2024: 80.8% from 572 flights
- April 2024: 85.8% from 599 flights
- May 2024: 82.6% from 628 flights
- June 2024: 82.1% from 644 flights
- July 2024: 77.6% from 695 flights
- August 2024: 81.8% from 695 flights
- September 2024: 86.4% from 648 flights
- October 2024: 90.1% from 639 flights
- November 2024: 89.2% from 588 flights
- December 2024: 85.0% from 639 flights
- January 2025: 86.5% from 626 flights
- February 2025: 86.2% from 555 flights
- March 2025: 83.9% from 612 flights
- April 2025: 88.0% from 592 flights
- May 2025: 83.5% from 653 flights
- June 2025: 77.2% from 632 flights
- July 2025: 80.5% from 642 flights
- August 2025: 80.9% from 633 flights
- September 2025: 92.5% from 606 flights
- October 2025: 88.6% from 612 flights
- November 2025: 90.6% from 604 flights
- December 2025: 82.0% from 629 flights
- January 2026: 86.0% from 562 flights
- February 2026: 87.2% from 555 flights
- March 2026: 84.9% from 638 flights
- April 2026: 87.7% from 613 flights
- May 2026: 85.9% from 679 flights
- June 2026: 78.7% from 651 flights
- July 2026: 80.5% from 668 flights
Over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), on-time arrivals averaged 85.3% against 84.8% in the 12 months before — broadly unchanged.
Data and methodology
Calculated by FlyerIntel from 23,177 LAX → SEA flight records from the US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, covering July 2023 – July 2026. Late means 15 or more minutes past scheduled arrival; cancelled and diverted flights are left out of on-time rates.
Full methodology · Data sources · Report a problem
Related research: How Long a Layover Needs to Be · Two Airlines on One Route · Best Time of Day to Fly From Major US Airports
Analysis last recomputed