SAN to IAD flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Diego International Airport to Washington Dulles International Airport · 2,253 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
- SAN: Airport closed. Closed, expected to reopen Oct 11 at 13:00 UTC.
On-time arrivals
88%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.7%
10 flights
Avg arrival delay
10 min
77 min when late
Airlines
2
1,402 flights tracked
Key facts
- Flights from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (IAD) arrived on time 88% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.7% were cancelled, and 3% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (89% on time); Alaska Airlines was the least (87%).
- Departures scheduled around 1pm did best (97% on time); around 10am did worst (74%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (93% on time) and Sunday the least (83%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (39%).
Which airline is most on time from SAN to IAD?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 89% | 0.7% | 10 min | 3.2% | 1,041 |
| Alaska Airlines | 87% | 0.8% | 8 min | 3.9% | 361 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 7am82%34 flights
- 8am89%384 flights
- 9am89%222 flights
- 10am74%71 flights
- 12pm88%293 flights
- 1pm97%70 flights
- 9pm88%181 flights
- 10pm90%145 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday87%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday93%0.5% cancelled
- Wednesday88%0.5% cancelled
- Thursday87%0.5% cancelled
- Friday88%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday92%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday83%3.4% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)39%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion25%
- Late-arriving aircraft22%
- Extreme weather13%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather50%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)40%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion10%
- Security0%
SAN to IAD: common questions
- How often are SAN to IAD flights on time?
- 88% 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 San Diego to Washington cancelled?
- 0.7% of scheduled flights were cancelled (10 of 1,402).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 10 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 77 min behind schedule on average, and 3.4% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SAN?
- Flights on this route spent 23 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: IAD to SAN — 84% on time
More flights from San Diego
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: SAN → IAD, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.