SAN to LAX flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Diego International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport · 109 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
- SAN: Airport closed. Closed, expected to reopen Oct 11 at 13:00 UTC.
On-time arrivals
89%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.9%
23 flights
Avg arrival delay
9 min
75 min when late
Airlines
2
2,447 flights tracked
Key facts
- Flights from San Diego (SAN) to Los Angeles (LAX) arrived on time 89% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.9% were cancelled, and 4% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (92% on time); SkyWest Airlines was the least (88%).
- Departures scheduled around 6am did best (94% on time); around 4pm did worst (69%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (94% on time) and Friday the least (84%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (55%).
Which airline is most on time from SAN to LAX?
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 | 92% | 0.0% | 6 min | 2.3% | 218 |
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 88% | 1.0% | 9 min | 3.9% | 2,229 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am94%728 flights
- 9am87%74 flights
- 10am89%418 flights
- 11am88%220 flights
- 2pm90%61 flights
- 3pm82%210 flights
- 4pm69%94 flights
- 6pm93%99 flights
- 7pm87%264 flights
- 8pm88%273 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday88%0.8% cancelled
- Tuesday94%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday89%0.8% cancelled
- Thursday90%1.4% cancelled
- Friday84%1.6% cancelled
- Saturday91%1.0% cancelled
- Sunday86%0.9% 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)55%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion18%
- Late-arriving aircraft16%
- Extreme weather11%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion78%
- Extreme weather22%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)0%
- Security0%
SAN to LAX: common questions
- How often are SAN to LAX flights on time?
- 89% 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 Los Angeles cancelled?
- 0.9% of scheduled flights were cancelled (23 of 2,447).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 9 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 75 min behind schedule on average, and 3.7% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SAN?
- Flights on this route spent 26 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: LAX to SAN — 85% 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 → LAX, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.