Flights San Diego → Washington
SAN → IAD
How long is the flight from San Diego to Washington?
The flight from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (IAD) takes 4h 38m on average. That is the median time recorded across 3 scheduled flights on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
The flight route from San Diego to Washington has an on-time performance rate of 89%, with an average delay of just 3.9 minutes per flight. Over the past year, this route has seen a total of 327 flights operated by various aircraft models including Boeing 737-900, Boeing 757-200, Airbus A320, and Boeing 737-800.
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 (IAD) route is operated by United Airlines. Across 874 flights monitored in recent months, 87% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 6 minutes. The cancellation rate is 4.00%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 20.2/100 (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 (IAD) heads east for about 3,618 km, a flight time of roughly 4h 38m.
Departures from San Diego on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 65% of SAN-IAD 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 874 tracked SAN-IAD flights, 87% left on time with an average delay of 6 min and a 4.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines (UA) | 83% | 5 min | 1.3% |
Airlines operating SAN-IAD
Airports
Frequently asked questions about SAN-IAD
The flight from San Diego (SAN) to Washington (IAD) takes 4h 38m on average. That is the median time recorded across 3 scheduled flights on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the San Diego (SAN) -> Washington (IAD) route, on-time performance is 87% with an average delay of 6 minutes, based on 874 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on San Diego-Washington is 4.00% across 874 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: United 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.
