Which Dublin to London Heathrow flight actually arrives on time? We tracked 60 days of data

Dublin and London Heathrow is one of the busiest short-haul routes in Europe. Aer Lingus and British Airways between them operate around 8-10 departures a day in each direction, but not all of those flights are equal when it comes to punctuality. We tracked every flight on this route for 60 days to find out which departures consistently arrive on time, and which ones to think twice about.

Key findings

EI164 at 12:05 is the most punctual Dublin to Heathrow flight, arriving on time 98.39% of the time across 62 tracked flights.
EI151 at 07:50 is the top qualifying performer from Heathrow to Dublin, arriving on time 98.08% of the time across 52 tracked flights.
British Airways operates multiple Heathrow to Dublin services but holds just 2 of the top 10 spots in our on-time rankings.

About this data

RouteRanking tracks historical on-time arrival performance for every flight on this route using real flight data, updated daily. A flight is counted as on time if it arrives within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival time. Flights with fewer than 30 observations are excluded to ensure statistical reliability. The data below covers Aer Lingus services on the outbound leg. British Airways flights appear in the Heathrow to Dublin dataset but are not yet fully represented in our outbound figures.

Dublin to London Heathrow - which flight should you book? Our dataset covers 9 scheduled services on the Dublin to Heathrow route over the last 60 days. On-time performance ranges from 98% at the top end down to 72% at the bottom, a 26 percentage point gap between the best and worst qualifying flights. If you are booking on price alone, you could easily end up on the least punctual flight without knowing it.

Top performers - Dublin to Heathrow

EI164 - 12:05 departure - 98.39% on time (62 flights in sample). The top pick on this route and the strongest result in the outbound dataset. A lunchtime departure with a near-perfect record across 62 flights, the largest sample size on this leg.

EI184 - 19:45 departure - 98.18% on time (55 flights in sample). The evening departure is the second-best performer. A useful option if you need a full working day in Dublin before flying.

EI172 - 15:30 departure - 96.77% on time (62 flights in sample). A strong mid-afternoon choice with one of the largest sample sizes in the dataset.

EI158 - 10:00 departure - 96.72% on time (61 flights in sample). The best-performing morning departure and a reliable option if you need to arrive in London before lunch.

Worst performers - Dublin to Heathrow

EI169 - 16:20 departure - 77.08% on time (48 flights in sample). The worst qualifying late-afternoon flight on this route arrives into Heathrow during one of its peak congestion periods. Even departing on time from Dublin does not guarantee an on-time arrival when Heathrow's afternoon traffic is stacking up.

EI155 - 09:50 departure - 72% on time (50 flights in sample). The most surprising entry: a mid-morning slot that should theoretically perform well, yet it is the weakest qualifying flight in the outbound dataset. One in four passengers on this service arrives late.

Why do some Dublin to Heathrow flights perform better than others? Heathrow is the busiest airport in Europe and operates close to its slot limit for most of the day. Afternoon arrivals face more congestion, holding patterns and gate availability issues than earlier services. Departure time is the single biggest predictor of punctuality on this route, more so than airline.

Dublin to Heathrow - full summary

Flight	Departure	On-Time %	Flights in Sample
EI164	12:05	98.39%	62
EI184	19:45	98.18%	55
EI172	15:30	96.77%	62
EI158	10:00	96.72%	61
...	...	...	...
EI169	16:20	77.08%	48
EI155	09:50	72%	50

Only flights with 30+ observations are included. Ranked by on-time performance. See our live Dublin to Heathrow on-time rankings.

Heathrow to Dublin - the return leg

The return journey has 19 scheduled services and tells a slightly different story. BA824 holds the top spot on paper with a 100% on-time record, but with only 22 observations it sits below our 30-flight confidence threshold. Among flights with sufficient data, Aer Lingus dominates. Despite operating multiple services on this route, British Airways holds just 2 of the top 10 spots in our on-time rankings.

Top performers - Heathrow to Dublin

BA824 - 06:20 departure - 100% on time (22 flights in sample). The top pick on the raw leaderboard but still below our 30-flight threshold. It is a strong early signal worth watching as the sample grows.

EI151 - 07:50 departure - 98.08% on time (52 flights in sample). The top performer among qualifying flights and the one to book if punctuality is your priority on the return leg. This early morning departure consistently delivers.

EI173 - 17:45 departure - 96.15% on time (52 flights in sample). A strong late-afternoon choice that performs well despite leaving during a busy Heathrow period.

EI159 - 12:10 departure - 92.16% on time (51 flights in sample). A solid midday option with a healthy sample size.

Worst performers - Heathrow to Dublin

EI168 - 14:15 departure - 81.97% on time (61 flights in sample). The weakest qualifying afternoon flight on the return leg. This slot catches Heathrow at one of its most congested points, making it more exposed to knock-on delays from earlier in the day.

EI152 - 06:40 departure - 80% on time (60 flights in sample). This early morning departure underperforms relative to what you might expect from the first bank of flights.

EI154 - 07:35 departure - 75.41% on time (61 flights in sample). The worst-performing return flight with sufficient data. Nearly one in four passengers on the 07:35 arrives late into Dublin. If you have an early meeting or a connection to make, this is the flight to avoid.

Heathrow to Dublin - full summary

Flight	Departure	On-Time %	Flights in Sample
BA824	06:20	100%	22
EI151	07:50	98.08%	52
EI173	17:45	96.15%	52
EI159	12:10	92.16%	51
...	...	...	...
EI168	14:15	81.97%	61
EI152	06:40	80%	60
EI154	07:35	75.41%	61

Only flights with 30+ observations qualify for our main rankings. See our live Heathrow to Dublin on-time rankings.

Summary - best and worst flights on the Dublin Heathrow route

On the Dublin to Heathrow leg, avoid the 16:20 and 09:50 departures and lean toward lunchtime or evening slots instead. On the return from Heathrow, EI151 at 07:50 is the standout qualifying choice at 98.08% on time, with BA824 at 06:20 showing promise as its sample size grows.

For the full ranked table of every flight on both legs, see our live Dublin to Heathrow on-time rankings and Heathrow to Dublin on-time rankings.

London Heathrow also ranks #1 in our UK to Dublin punctuality leaderboard with a route average of 86%, making it the most reliable UK departure point for Dublin in our current dataset.

FAQs

How long is the flight from Dublin to London Heathrow? The scheduled flight time is approximately 1 hour 35 minutes in each direction.

Which airlines fly Dublin to Heathrow? Aer Lingus and British Airways both operate the route, with around 8-10 combined departures daily in each direction.

Which Dublin to Heathrow flight is most punctual? EI164 at 12:05 is the top performer, with a 98.39% on-time rate across 62 tracked flights. You can see the latest figures in our Dublin to Heathrow rankings.

Which Heathrow to Dublin flight is most punctual? Among flights with 30 or more observations, EI151 at 07:50 leads with 98.08% on time across 52 flights. For the full picture, including sub-threshold flights like BA824, see our Heathrow to Dublin rankings.

Why is the 07:35 Heathrow to Dublin flight so often delayed? EI154 at 07:35 is the weakest-performing qualifying return flight at 75.41% on time. Early morning Heathrow departures can be affected by overnight engineering overruns, aircraft rotation issues and morning slot congestion.

Is Heathrow or Gatwick better for flying to Dublin? Based on our data, Heathrow ranks #1 and Gatwick ranks #4 in our UK to Dublin punctuality leaderboard, with route averages of 86% and 82% respectively.