Historical on-time performance
Washington to San Francisco
2,442 miData through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
Flights on DCA–SFO arrive on time 75% of the time over the last 12 months.
On-time rate75%arrived within 15 min
p90 delay45 min1 in 10 flights is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled1.2%of scheduled flights
based on 1,006 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).
By airline
How each carrier compares
- United AirlinesbestOn-time77%Medianon timep9040 minCancel1.1%Flights729
- Alaska AirlinesOn-time68%Medianon timep9065 minCancel1.4%Flights277
Why flights run late
Delay causes
- Airline24%
- Weather1%
- Air traffic (NAS)42%
- Late aircraft33%
- Security0%
Most delay minutes here are attributed to Air traffic (NAS).
When flights don't go
Why flights were cancelled
- Airline17%
- Weather67%
- Air traffic (NAS)17%
- Security0%
Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 12 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).
Over time
On-time trend
By season
On-time rate by month
When to fly
Best time to fly DCA → SFO
All airlines · rolling 36 months (2023-06 .. 2026-05).
Best time of day
Mornings are the most reliable time of day to fly this route — 91% on time.
- Mornings91% on time · p90 10 min · 471 flights
- Evenings74% on time · p90 55 min · 2,186 flights
Best day of week
On-time rates are fairly even by day on this route — ranging from 73% to 83% on time.
- Saturdays83% on time · p90 25 min · 381 flights
- Tuesdays80% on time · p90 35 min · 379 flights
- Fridays76% on time · p90 50 min · 382 flights
- Sundays76% on time · p90 55 min · 381 flights
- Wednesdays76% on time · p90 40 min · 378 flights
- Mondays76% on time · p90 45 min · 379 flights
- Thursdays73% on time · p90 60 min · 377 flights
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