Connecting in SFO, DEN or IAH
 

I need to change my flight on 1/15/16. I was originally flying AUS-IAH-LAX on the 10:55am flight, but need to change it to an early afternoon flight. I need to be in LAX around 6pm or earlier for a company party.

I've narrowed down my options to:

AUS-SFO-LAX (1hr 10min layover) + $0 and arrives at 6:06pm
AUS-IAH-LAX (46 min layover) +$32 and arrives at 5:38pm
AUS-DEN-LAX (59 min layover) +$32 and arrives at 5:00pm

What would you choose?

Thanks everyone!

If you need to be in LA at 6pm or earlier, then I would choose the flight that gets you there the earliest (through DEN). Denver does include a risk for winter weather, but SFO is no picnic when weather is bad either (hello el Niño...). I suppose IAH may be the best bet weather-wise during January, but the shorter layover might cause some issues.

If the Denver connection involves two mainline flights then I would choose Denver. If it involves Express then I would pick IAH, assuming it is two mainline fights.

The connection in DEN is United Express 3574 to Mainline 481. In IAH it's United Express 5243 to Mainline 1121. So is IAH the better bet?

Yes, that's what I was weighing. That chance of winter weather in DEN is risky, however, my colleague who's from Crested Butte says I should be fine barring a winter storm that day. Ha, I would have such luck!

You can pay $75 for SDC if one of the options is better on the travel day. For now, IAH wins out due to likely better weather . :)

I just checked flightaware UA366 has been pretty bad on time the past few days (even though the storm had past).

AUS-IAH on 46 minutes may be too tight. If it weren't for the UA366 stats I would say no brainer for the IAH route.

Is UA366 the flight before my AUS-IAH segment?

If I "needed" to be in LA that evening, I would not choose any of those. They are all risky - odds are probably 1/3 or higher that you will be materially delayed, either at origin or at the connection.

If I "needed" to be in LA that evening, I would take the morning nonstop.

Come on everyone, which flight nets the most PQM's? This is FlyerTalk, we all talk about status and miles and upgrades don't we?

Just kidding, if it were me I would probably go through Denver. Is a compromise on the layover time, 1 hour is plenty to get from any gate to any gate at Denver, even UX to Mainline. And it gets you there earlier.

Agreed with the morning flight choice. I fly AUS-LAX with great regularity and a layover will always be risky if you need to be there for 6pm.

Another option would be to consider another LA area airport where you could get an earlier connection - depending on your final destination in the basin of course.

Right. I would loved to have kept my original booking of 10:55 AUS-IAH-LAX arriving at 2:50p, but I cannot due to a work commitment. This leaves me with the predicament I'm in. Out of my three options which do you think would be least likely to have a significant delay?

That's hilarious!

Based on the replies so far, I'm leaning towards DEN. Thanks!

It's impossible to predict. They're all potential problems.

AUS-IAH is regional and that's a risky flight followed by a tight connection.

The DEN transfer can be a problem if there's big snow. Particularly since you're on an RJ inbound.

The SFO transfer is also subject to potential ATC problems. We're having a rainy winter and SFO-LAX can get messy when flow control is imposed. When that happens, the delays stack up, and by the time you would be connecting it can be a complete cf.

I would probably go with DEN first or IAH second. And I would follow KMXU's advice and watch the flights day of departure and do an SDC if you see a problem.

UA366 is the AUS-IAH

It's an main line aircraft on an B733 so I would assume you shouldn't have to change terminals on an train (Terminal B to C/E)