Milwaukee (MKE) to San Diego (SAN)
Flight time
≈ 4h 16m
Bearing
256° W
Milwaukee (MKE) to San Diego (SAN) is 1,736 miles (2,793 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies MKE–SAN
Filed traffic dataIn July 2026, Southwest Airlines operated the most departures, one of 2 carriers flying nonstop MKE–SAN; the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was the most common aircraft at 71% of departures; flights ran 76% full.
Departures
62
July 2026
Seats
10,837
both directions
Passengers
8,193
both directions
Load factor
75.6%
RPM ÷ ASM
Who flies MKE–SAN?
Southwest Airlines operated the most nonstop MKE–SAN departures in July 2026 (61), one of 2 carriers on the route.
- WN
61 departures · 10,637 seats
Share of departures98.4%76.4%
Load
- UA
1 departures · 200 seats
Share of departures1.6%35.0%
Load
What plane flies MKE–SAN?
In July 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew 71% of MKE–SAN departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 8
44 departures · 72.8% load
71.0% - Boeing 737-800
16 departures · 88.3% load
25.8% - Boeing 737-700
1 departures · 32.9% load
1.6% - Airbus A321neo
1 departures · 35.0% load
1.6%
How has MKE–SAN traffic changed?
Nonstop MKE–SAN departures rose from 3 in August 2025 to 62 in July 2026.
Monthly nonstop MKE–SAN traffic, trailing 12 months through July 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
August 2025
3 departures · 356 passengers
73.4%
Load
September 2025
1 departures · 92 passengers
51.4%
Load
October 2025
42 departures · 5,404 passengers
77.9%
Load
November 2025
41 departures · 4,677 passengers
76.4%
Load
December 2025
35 departures · 4,261 passengers
79.1%
Load
January 2026
16 departures · 1,526 passengers
60.0%
Load
February 2026
22 departures · 1,852 passengers
51.7%
Load
March 2026
43 departures · 5,604 passengers
78.5%
Load
April 2026
37 departures · 4,343 passengers
69.4%
Load
May 2026
38 departures · 3,974 passengers
63.3%
Load
June 2026
57 departures · 7,947 passengers
80.3%
Load
July 2026
62 departures · 8,193 passengers
75.6%
Load
By direction
Each direction is filed separately — they rarely match.
MKE → SAN
77.2% full
31 departures · 4,208 passengers
SAN → MKE
74.0% full
31 departures · 3,985 passengers
Nonstop MKE–SAN traffic has been filed since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through July 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work).
The airports
Frequently asked
How far is Milwaukee (MKE) from San Diego (SAN)?
MKE to SAN is 1,736 miles (2,793 km / 1,508 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from MKE to SAN?
A nonstop covers the 1,736-mile great-circle distance in roughly 4h 16m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies MKE–SAN?
In July 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew the largest share of departures (71.0%), followed by the Boeing 737-800 (25.8%).
What mileage do I earn flying MKE–SAN?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,736-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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