These are the busiest routes to California

Summary

Los Angeles is California’s most popular travel destination.
American Airlines operates 424 flights between Dallas/Fort Worth and LA, making it the busiest route this month.
Delta Air Lines operates 371 flights between Atlanta and LA, the second busiest route this month.

The US West Coast is well connected to the rest of the country. American airlines offer thousands of flights to California every month. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, airlines will operate a total of 78,099 flights to airports across California in August 2024.

California’s most popular travel destination: Los Angeles (LAX)

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is the most popular destination in California, followed by San Francisco International Airport (SFO). This is no surprise, as LAX is the largest and busiest international airport on the West Coast.

American Airlines fleet at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport

Photo: Wenjie Zheng | Shutterstock

In fact, LAX airport handled 75 million passengers in 2023, making it the eighth busiest airport in the world. According to Cirium data, the largest airlines, including American Airlines , United Airlines And Delta Air Lines will each operate more than 270 flights from their main hubs to LAX airport.

This month, the most frequently served connection to California is American Airlines’ connection between Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and LAX. The airline offers a total of 424 scheduled flights between these two destinations.

Delta serves the second most frequently served route to the Golden State. The Atlanta-based airline offers 371 scheduled flights between its main base at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) and LAX.

airline	route	Number of flights in August	Seating	Available Seat Miles (ASMs)
American Airlines	Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW)-Los Angeles (LAX)	424	82,093	101,384,855
Delta Air Lines	Atlanta (ATL)-Los Angeles (LAX)	371	77,905	151,603,130
Southwest Airlines	San Diego (SAN)-San Jose (SJC)	342	51,050	21,287,850
Southwest Airlines	San Diego (SAN)-Sacramento (SMF)	340	51,308	24,627,840
Southwest Airlines	Las Vegas (LAS)-San Diego (SAN)	337	51,647	13,324,926
Alaska Airlines	Seattle (SEA)-Los Angeles (LAX)	335	55,985	53,409,690
United Airlines	Chicago (ORD)-San Francisco (SFO)	334	72,662	134.134.052
Southwest Airlines	Las Vegas (LAS)-Sacramento (SMF)	313	49,783	19,763,851
Alaska Airlines	Seattle (SEA)-San Francisco (SFO)	312	53,303	36,192,737

Although LAX is the most popular destination in California, the third most frequently served route in the state does not go through Los Angeles. Southwest Airlines ranks third with its route between San Diego International Airport (SAN) and San Jose International Airport (SJC), with a total of 342 flights this month.

San Francisco is also a leader

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) is the second most popular airline destination in California. United offers the most flights to SFO, primarily from its hubs at Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR).

Photo: MKPhoto12 | Shutterstock

According to Cirium, United operates 334 flights between ORD and SFO, making it the eighth-most served route to California in August 2024.

Other frequently served routes include SFO to EWR, Denver (DEN) to SFO, Houston (IAH) to SFO and LAX to SFO, all operated by United. Alaska Airlines is also one of the top carriers and serves SFO frequently. The Seattle-based airline offers 312 scheduled flights between Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA) and SFO.