Chicago (ORD) to Santa Ana (SNA)
Flight time
≈ 4h 15m
Bearing
260° W
Chicago (ORD) to Santa Ana (SNA) is 1,722 miles (2,772 km) as the crow flies — the great-circle baseline most distance-based mileage programs credit.
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What actually flies ORD–SNA
US DOT T-100 · filed dataIn April 2026, American Airlines operated the most departures, one of 2 carriers flying nonstop ORD–SNA; the Boeing 737 MAX 8 was the most common aircraft at 81% of departures; flights ran 90% full.
Departures
346
April 2026
Seats
56,092
both directions
Passengers
50,405
both directions
Load factor
89.9%
passengers ÷ seats
Who flies ORD–SNA?
American Airlines operated the most nonstop ORD–SNA departures in April 2026 (176), one of 2 carriers on the route.
- AA
American Airlines
176 departures · 30,272 seats
Share of departures50.9%89.9%
Load
- UA
United Airlines
170 departures · 25,820 seats
Share of departures49.1%89.8%
Load
What plane flies ORD–SNA?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew 81% of ORD–SNA departures — more than any other aircraft type.
- Boeing 737 MAX 8
280 departures · 89.7% load
80.9% - Boeing 737-700
60 departures · 91.3% load
17.3% - Boeing 737-800
6 departures · 86.4% load
1.7%
How has ORD–SNA traffic changed?
Nonstop ORD–SNA departures fell from 413 in May 2025 to 346 in April 2026.
Monthly nonstop ORD–SNA traffic, trailing 12 months through April 2026. Bars scale to the busiest month; months with no filed service show as zero.
May 2025
413 departures · 59,026 passengers
86.8%
Load
June 2025
398 departures · 58,615 passengers
90.4%
Load
July 2025
400 departures · 60,301 passengers
92.7%
Load
August 2025
394 departures · 56,881 passengers
88.8%
Load
September 2025
377 departures · 52,748 passengers
85.9%
Load
October 2025
416 departures · 58,762 passengers
86.4%
Load
November 2025
333 departures · 45,223 passengers
84.0%
Load
December 2025
346 departures · 48,103 passengers
85.8%
Load
January 2026
341 departures · 45,908 passengers
83.2%
Load
February 2026
325 departures · 45,749 passengers
86.7%
Load
March 2026
348 departures · 51,334 passengers
91.0%
Load
April 2026
346 departures · 50,405 passengers
89.9%
Load
By direction
The DOT files each direction separately — they rarely match.
ORD → SNA
88.8% full
175 departures · 24,146 passengers
SNA → ORD
90.8% full
171 departures · 26,259 passengers
Nonstop ORD–SNA traffic has been filed with the US DOT since 2025.
Source: US DOT BTS Form 41 T-100 Segment (All Carriers). Data through April 2026; filings from 2025. Public domain (US Government work). The DOT publishes roughly three months in arrears.
The airports
Santa Ana
US
John Wayne Orange County International Airport
Coordinates
33.68°N, 117.87°W
Hemisphere
N · W
Frequently asked
How far is Chicago (ORD) from Santa Ana (SNA)?
ORD to SNA is 1,722 miles (2,772 km / 1,497 nautical miles) measured great-circle — the shortest path over the surface of the Earth.
How long is the flight from ORD to SNA?
A nonstop covers the 1,722-mile great-circle distance in roughly 4h 15m of block time, before winds. Actual schedules vary a few percent by direction and aircraft.
What plane flies ORD–SNA?
In April 2026, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 flew the largest share of departures (80.9%), followed by the Boeing 737-700 (17.3%).
What mileage do I earn flying ORD–SNA?
Distance-based programs credit off the 1,722-mile great-circle figure, then apply your fare-class earning rate. Revenue-based programs credit off the fare instead.
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