Flights Washington → San Diego
DCA → SAN
How long is the flight from Washington to San Diego?
The flight from Washington (DCA) to San Diego (SAN) 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
The flight route from Washington to San Diego operates with an average on-time performance of 71%, experiencing a mean delay of 18.3 minutes per flight. Over the course of a year, this route sees 89 flights conducted using Airbus A319 aircraft, connecting two historically significant airports: Washington's airport, which opened in 1938, and San Diego International Airport, established back in 1928, serving over 22 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 Washington (DCA) → San Diego (SAN) route is operated by American Airlines. Across 195 flights monitored in recent months, 74% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 14 minutes. The cancellation rate is 0.00%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 15.7/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At San Diego the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to San Diego: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Washington (DCA) to San Diego (SAN) heads west for about 3,655 km, a flight time of roughly 5h 0m.
Departures from Washington on this leg cluster in the overnight window: about 93% of DCA-SAN flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into San Diego it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 195 tracked DCA-SAN flights, 74% left on time with an average delay of 14 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 DCA-SAN
Airports
Frequently asked questions about DCA-SAN
The flight from Washington (DCA) to San Diego (SAN) 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 Washington (DCA) -> San Diego (SAN) route, on-time performance is 74% with an average delay of 14 minutes, based on 195 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Washington-San Diego 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 San Diego, 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.
