FlightRecord

Tucson (TUS) to San Diego (SAN): On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

The calendar drives reliability on TUS–SAN. January 2025 flights landed on schedule 95% of the time, but October 2024 dropped to 61% — a gap of 34 points. Across the full period the route averages 80% on-time against a national 78%. Morning departures also hold up better than evening ones (91% vs 61%), which matters most in the rough months.

On-time
80%
arrived <15 min late
Avg delay
13 min
completed flights
Cancelled
0.4%
Flights/day
1.8
last 12 months
Duration
1h 22m
scheduled
Distance
367 mi

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly on-time percentage for TUS to SAN flights50%75%100%June 2024: 73% on-time (56 flights)73Jun 2024July 2024: 76% on-time (58 flights)76August 2024: 91% on-time (57 flights)91September 2024: 87% on-time (55 flights)87Sep 2024October 2024: 61% on-time (49 flights)61November 2024: 83% on-time (46 flights)83December 2024: 81% on-time (44 flights)81Dec 2024January 2025: 95% on-time (39 flights)95February 2025: 88% on-time (43 flights)88March 2025: 84% on-time (55 flights)84Mar 2025April 2025: 88% on-time (56 flights)88May 2025: 80% on-time (56 flights)80June 2025: 77% on-time (56 flights)77Jun 2025July 2025: 79% on-time (57 flights)79August 2025: 83% on-time (48 flights)83September 2025: 79% on-time (47 flights)79Sep 2025October 2025: 71% on-time (56 flights)71November 2025: 81% on-time (54 flights)81December 2025: 77% on-time (57 flights)77Dec 2025January 2026: 85% on-time (56 flights)85February 2026: 85% on-time (52 flights)85March 2026: 74% on-time (58 flights)74Mar 2026April 2026: 73% on-time (56 flights)73May 2026: 70% on-time (56 flights)70

Best time to fly from TUS to SAN

Aim for departures around 6 a.m. (95% on-time); avoid 7 p.m. departures (58%).

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour, TUS to SAN6 a.m.: 95% on-time (153 flights)67 a.m.: 93% on-time (205 flights)78 a.m.: 95% on-time (91 flights)89 a.m.: 92% on-time (95 flights)910 a.m.: 74% on-time (73 flights)1011 a.m.: 93% on-time (42 flights)1112 p.m.: 92% on-time (26 flights)121 p.m.: 96% on-time (23 flights)132 p.m.: 96% on-time (27 flights)143 p.m.: 86% on-time (22 flights)154 p.m.: 63% on-time (89 flights)165 p.m.: 65% on-time (137 flights)176 p.m.: 62% on-time (180 flights)187 p.m.: 58% on-time (68 flights)198 p.m.: 44% on-time (23 flights)20scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday80%15 min
Tuesday86%9 min
Wednesdaybest89%7 min
Thursday74%18 min
Friday71%18 min
Saturday86%8 min
Sunday77%14 min

What causes delays on this route

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT.

  • Late-arriving aircraft56%
  • Airline operations14%
  • National airspace system30%
  • Weather1%

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights from TUS to SAN delayed?
20% of TUS–SAN flights arrived 15 or more minutes late (the US DOT definition of a delay) between 2024-06 and 2026-05. The average arrival delay across completed flights was 13 minutes.
What is the best time of day to fly from TUS to SAN?
Departures around 6 a.m. have the best record (95% on-time), while departures around 7 p.m. have the worst (58%). As on most US routes, delays accumulate through the day, so earlier flights are generally safer.
How long is the flight from TUS to SAN?
The scheduled TUS–SAN flight time averages 1h 22m over 367 miles. Actual arrival times vary — flights on this route land 15+ minutes late 20% of the time.
How often are TUS to SAN flights cancelled?
0.4% of scheduled flights on this route were cancelled between 2024-06 and 2026-05, at or below the national rate of 1.6%.
What is the worst month to fly from TUS to SAN?
October 2024 was the roughest month in this dataset, with only 61% of arrivals on time. The best was January 2025 at 95%. If your dates are flexible, that 34-point gap is worth planning around.

Based on 1,267 flights, 2024-062026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.