Washington (DCA) to San Diego (SAN)
Flight time
≈ 5h 21m
Bearing
272° W
Washington (DCA) to San Diego (SAN) is 2,271 miles (3,655 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
Look up a route, or build a trip
Change the airports, or add stops for a multi-leg trip.
What actually flies DCA–SAN
Filed traffic dataIn May 2026, Alaska Airlines was the only carrier flying nonstop DCA–SAN; the Boeing 737-800 was the most common aircraft at 84% of departures; flights ran 83% full.
Departures
61
May 2026
Seats
9,815
both directions
Passengers
8,157
both directions
Load factor
83.1%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies DCA–SAN?
Alaska Airlines was the only carrier to fly nonstop DCA–SAN in May 2026 (61 departures).
- AS
61 departures · 9,815 seats
Share of departures100.0%83.1%
Load
What plane flies DCA–SAN?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737-800 flew 84% of DCA–SAN departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737-800
51 departures · 83.1% load
83.6% - Boeing 737 MAX 8
10 departures · 83.0% load
16.4%
How has DCA–SAN traffic changed?
Nonstop DCA–SAN departures rose from 60 in June 2025 to 61 in May 2026.
Monthly nonstop DCA–SAN traffic, trailing 12 months through May 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
June 2025
60 departures · 7,899 passengers
82.8%
Load
July 2025
61 departures · 8,005 passengers
82.5%
Load
August 2025
61 departures · 7,825 passengers
80.5%
Load
September 2025
58 departures · 6,456 passengers
70.0%
Load
October 2025
62 departures · 7,626 passengers
77.3%
Load
November 2025
54 departures · 6,530 passengers
75.9%
Load
December 2025
62 departures · 7,519 passengers
75.8%
Load
January 2026
57 departures · 5,941 passengers
65.0%
Load
February 2026
56 departures · 6,718 passengers
74.9%
Load
March 2026
62 departures · 8,675 passengers
87.2%
Load
April 2026
59 departures · 8,310 passengers
87.7%
Load
May 2026
61 departures · 8,157 passengers
83.1%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
DCA → SAN
86.1% full
31 departures · 4,296 passengers
SAN → DCA
80.0% full
30 departures · 3,861 passengers
Nonstop DCA–SAN traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through May 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Washington (DCA) from San Diego (SAN)?
DCA to SAN is 2,271 miles (3,655 km / 1,973 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from DCA to SAN?
A nonstop covers the 2,271-mile great-circle distance in roughly 5h 21m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies DCA–SAN?
In May 2026, the Boeing 737-800 flew the largest share of departures (83.6%), followed by the Boeing 737 MAX 8 (16.4%).
What mileage do I earn flying DCA–SAN?
Distance-based programs credit off the 2,271-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
Keep exploring
Every route below is its own page.
Popular long-haul routes