MDW to SAN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Chicago Midway International Airport to San Diego International Airport · 1,728 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
- SAN: Airport closed. Closed, expected to reopen Oct 11 at 13:00 UTC.
On-time arrivals
72%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.4%
15 flights
Avg arrival delay
15 min
46 min when late
Airlines
1
1,092 flights tracked
Key facts
- Flights from Chicago (MDW) to San Diego (SAN) arrived on time 72% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 1.4% were cancelled, and 5% arrived an hour or more late.
- Southwest Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 7am did best (95% on time); around 2pm did worst (29%).
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (83% on time) and Thursday the least (69%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (37%).
Which airline is most on time from MDW to SAN?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 72% | 1.4% | 15 min | 5.2% | 1,092 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am94%35 flights
- 6am90%110 flights
- 7am95%57 flights
- 8am79%136 flights
- 10am64%157 flights
- 11am71%52 flights
- 12pm75%28 flights
- 1pm82%62 flights
- 2pm29%35 flights
- 3pm70%44 flights
- 4pm58%31 flights
- 5pm62%59 flights
- 6pm57%14 flights
- 7pm79%63 flights
- 8pm70%149 flights
- 9pm45%58 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday72%2.4% cancelled
- Tuesday73%0.7% cancelled
- Wednesday83%1.4% cancelled
- Thursday69%1.8% cancelled
- Friday70%1.1% cancelled
- Saturday70%1.5% cancelled
- Sunday70%0.7% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft37%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)34%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion28%
- Extreme weather1%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather80%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)20%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
MDW to SAN: common questions
- How often are MDW to SAN flights on time?
- 72% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Chicago to San Diego cancelled?
- 1.4% of scheduled flights were cancelled (15 of 1,092).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 15 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 46 min behind schedule on average, and 5.2% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at MDW?
- Flights on this route spent 16 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SAN to MDW — 78% on time
More flights from Chicago
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: MDW → SAN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.