Flights San Diego → Washington
SAN → DCA
How long is the flight from San Diego to Washington?
The flight from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (DCA) takes 5h on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
This flight route operates from San Diego to Washington, using Airbus A319 aircraft. With a total of 89 flights recorded and an on-time performance rate of 65%, the average delay is approximately 21.9 minutes. The origin airport in San Diego has been operational since 1928, while the destination airport opened its doors in 1938 and currently handles over 25 million passengers annually.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The San Diego (SAN) → Washington (DCA) route is operated by American Airlines. Across 195 flights monitored in recent months, 68% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 18 minutes. The cancellation rate is 0.00%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 22.7/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from San Diego the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Washington: what to expect in this direction
Flying from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (DCA) heads east for about 3,655 km, a flight time of roughly 5h 0m.
Departures from San Diego on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 92% of SAN-DCA flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing San Diego the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Washington it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 195 tracked SAN-DCA flights, 68% left on time with an average delay of 18 min and a 0.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| American Airlines (AA) | 79% | 6 min | 1.1% |
Airlines operating SAN-DCA
Airports
Frequently asked questions about SAN-DCA
The flight from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (DCA) takes 5h on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the San Diego (SAN) -> Washington (DCA) route, on-time performance is 68% with an average delay of 18 minutes, based on 195 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on San Diego-Washington is 0.00% across 195 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: American Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Washington, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
