LAX to DTW flight delays
Los Angeles, CA (LAX) Detroit, MI (DTW) · 1,979 miles
171 flights · March 2025 – August 2026 · US Bureau of Transportation Statistics
81.18%
Arrived on time
Within 15 minutes of schedule
0%
Cancelled
Share of scheduled flights
67 min
When late, late by
Average across delayed arrivals
13 min
Delay per flight
Averaged over every flight flown
What the record says about this route
The two directions do not behave alike. DTW to LAX arrives on time 9.3 points less often than the outbound. Delay accumulates through the flying day, so whichever direction is scheduled later tends to carry the worse record — which is an argument for booking the morning departure if the choice exists.
Only Delta Air Lines flies this route in the published record, so there is no choice to weigh — the route's figures and the airline's are the same figures.
The Los Angeles to Detroit route sits close to the middle of the record — neither notably punctual nor notably late.
Which airline should you fly on this route?
Over March 2025 – August 2026, Delta Air Lines arrived on time most often on LAX to DTW.
Every airline on LAX to DTW
Ranked by how many flights each one operated. A carrier with fewer than 100 flights in the period is listed but not graded.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delta Air Lines | 171 | 81.18% | 0% | 67 min | B |
The return leg
DTW to LAX Detroit back to Los Angeles 71.93% on time COther routes from Los Angeles
Common questions
Are flights from Los Angeles to Detroit usually delayed?
81.18% of flights on the LAX to DTW route arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, so roughly 2 in every ten arrived late. That is better than the average route in this record.
Which airlines fly from Los Angeles to Detroit?
Only Delta Air Lines appears in the published record on this route, with 171 flights and 81.18% arriving on time.
How often are LAX to DTW flights cancelled?
0% of scheduled flights did not operate — about 1 in every thousand. That is in the normal range.
When LAX to DTW flights are late, how late are they?
About 67 minutes on average across the flights that arrived more than 15 minutes behind schedule.
What these figures do and do not tell you
Everything on this page is counted from the flights that actually operated on LAX to DTW during March 2025 – August 2026, as reported by the airlines to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. "On time" is the federal definition: arriving at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.
A route's record is a description of the past, not a forecast. Weather, air traffic control and the aircraft's earlier flights that day drive most delays, and none of them are predictable from a historical rate. What the record does tell you is whether this route runs late more often than others, and which carrier on it has the better history — which is the part you can actually act on when you book.
Cancellations are counted separately from delays because they are a different problem for a traveller: a late flight still gets you there. How the grade is calculated →