SAN to ORD flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Diego International Airport to Chicago O'Hare International Airport · 1,723 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
- SAN: Airport closed. Closed, expected to reopen Oct 11 at 13:00 UTC.
On-time arrivals
78%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
1.3%
51 flights
Avg arrival delay
19 min
81 min when late
Airlines
4
3,869 flights tracked
Key facts
- Flights from San Diego (SAN) to Chicago (ORD) arrived on time 78% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, in line with the national average.
- 1.3% were cancelled, and 8% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (81% on time); Alaska Airlines was the least (72%).
- Departures scheduled around 10pm did best (93% on time); around 12pm did worst (64%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (85% on time) and Sunday the least (74%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was air traffic control & airport congestion (34%).
Which airline is most on time from SAN to ORD?
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 | 81% | 0.5% | 16 min | 6.1% | 1,673 |
| American Airlines | 78% | 1.7% | 21 min | 8.5% | 1,389 |
| Alaska Airlines | 72% | 2.3% | 19 min | 9.8% | 777 |
| Frontier Airlines | 55% | 3.3% | 66 min | 24.1% | 30 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am88%543 flights
- 7am86%367 flights
- 8am75%165 flights
- 9am83%42 flights
- 10am80%449 flights
- 11am81%45 flights
- 12pm64%153 flights
- 1pm65%415 flights
- 2pm65%429 flights
- 3pm69%176 flights
- 4pm74%164 flights
- 5pm77%436 flights
- 10pm93%485 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday75%1.7% cancelled
- Tuesday85%0.8% cancelled
- Wednesday80%1.3% cancelled
- Thursday77%1.1% cancelled
- Friday76%0.5% cancelled
- Saturday81%1.8% cancelled
- Sunday74%2.1% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion34%
- Late-arriving aircraft32%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)27%
- Extreme weather6%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather53%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)25%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion22%
- Security0%
SAN to ORD: common questions
- How often are SAN to ORD flights on time?
- 78% 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 Chicago cancelled?
- 1.3% of scheduled flights were cancelled (51 of 3,869).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 19 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 81 min behind schedule on average, and 7.8% 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: ORD to SAN — 72% 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 → ORD, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.