RDU to SAN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Raleigh-Durham International Airport to San Diego International Airport · 2,193 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
- SAN: Airport closed. Closed, expected to reopen Oct 11 at 13:00 UTC.
On-time arrivals
81%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.0%
1 flights
Avg arrival delay
11 min
52 min when late
Airlines
1
101 flights tracked
Key facts
- Flights from Raleigh/Durham (RDU) to San Diego (SAN) arrived on time 81% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 1% were cancelled, and 5% arrived an hour or more late.
- Alaska Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 5pm did best (88% on time); around 7pm did worst (75%).
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (100% on time) and Thursday the least (53%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (35%).
Which airline is most on time from RDU 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | 81% | 1.0% | 11 min | 5.0% | 101 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5pm88%49 flights
- 7pm75%52 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday79%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday86%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday100%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday53%0.0% cancelled
- Friday87%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday85%7.1% cancelled
- Sunday79%0.0% 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 aircraft35%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion35%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)19%
- Extreme weather10%
- Security1%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)100%
- Extreme weather0%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
RDU to SAN: common questions
- How often are RDU to SAN flights on time?
- 81% 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 Raleigh/Durham to San Diego cancelled?
- 1.0% of scheduled flights were cancelled (1 of 101).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 11 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 52 min behind schedule on average, and 5.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at RDU?
- Flights on this route spent 18 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SAN to RDU — 85% on time
More flights from Raleigh/Durham
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: RDU → SAN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.