Flights San Francisco → Charlotte
SFO → CLT
How long is the flight from San Francisco to Charlotte?
The flight from San Francisco (SFO) to Charlotte (CLT) takes 4h 35m 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 Francisco to Charlotte operates with an Airbus A321 and has a high on-time performance rate of 86%, although flights experience an average delay of 20.6 minutes. With over 348 total flights annually, this route serves the highly trafficked destination airport in Charlotte, which accommodates nearly 47,758,605 passengers per year.
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 Francisco (SFO) → Charlotte (CLT) route is operated by American Airlines. Across 946 flights monitored in recent months, 80% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 23 minutes. The cancellation rate is 0.63%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 26.1/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Charlotte the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from San Francisco the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Charlotte: what to expect in this direction
Flying from San Francisco (SFO) to Charlotte (CLT) heads east for about 3,687 km, a flight time of roughly 4h 35m.
Departures from San Francisco on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 38% of SFO-CLT flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing San Francisco the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Charlotte it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 946 tracked SFO-CLT flights, 80% left on time with an average delay of 23 min and a 0.6% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
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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 SFO-CLT
Airports
Frequently asked questions about SFO-CLT
The flight from San Francisco (SFO) to Charlotte (CLT) takes 4h 35m 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 Francisco (SFO) -> Charlotte (CLT) route, on-time performance is 80% with an average delay of 23 minutes, based on 946 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on San Francisco-Charlotte is 0.63% across 946 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 Charlotte, 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.
