Alaska Airlines begins daily nonstop service from Washington to San Diego

Airport and airline leaders gathered Thursday at Dulles International Airport to celebrate the launch of Alaska Airlines daily nonstop service to San Diego.

Cutting the ribbon were (L-R): Paul Bobson, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Vice President for Airline Business Development; David Carlisle, Alaska Airlines Director of Network Planning and Scheduling; Richard Golinowski, Airports Authority Vice President and Dulles Airport Manager; Ian Chyun, Airports Authority Airline Business Development Director. Photo credit: @Dulles_Airport

The inaugural flight, a Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft, departed Dulles Gate B65 at 10:12 a.m. At the gate, passengers were treated to novelties including toy penguins, luggage tags and sunglasses before boarding the plane.

Speaking on behalf of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, Vice President for Airline Business Development Paul Bobson said, “Today’s flight represents the capstone on a record-breaking season for Washington Dulles and the Airports Authority. From April through June, eight airlines–four of which were new entrants–launched 11 different routes across our airports, including today’s San Diego launch.”

The event concluded with a ribbon-cutting at the gate and sendoff for the San Diego-bound passengers.

Alaska Airlines inaugural flight from San Diego to Washington was welcomed with a water arch salute. Photo credit: @Dulles_Airport

Alaska serves 33 cities from San Diego, including Washington Dulles.

Flights between Washington and San Diego will operate daily on the following schedule:

Future passengers can book travel at Alaskaair.com

About the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority operates the U.S. Capital Region’s gateways to the nation and the world, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport, the Dulles Airport Access Highway and the Dulles Toll Road. The Authority also managed construction of the Silver Line, a 23-mile extension of the Washington region’s Metrorail public transit system through northern Virginia, which began service to Dulles International in 2022.