San Francisco to Los Angeles empty leg flights
Updated Nov 5, 11 PM PST · 21 legs posted in the last 7 days · 17 expired
15 empty legs are flying San Francisco to Los Angeles right now, listed by the operators flying them and refreshed through the day. Today's legs are turboprop, light, mid, super mid, heavy and ultra long range cabins. Today's legs leave from San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport (OAK), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and San Carlos Airport (SQL) and land at Van Nuys Airport (VNY), John Wayne Orange County International Airport (SNA) and Camarillo International Airport. Every price is an estimated total; the exact total is confirmed with you before you sign.
Flying San Francisco to Los Angeles
Soonest first. Every row opens the full listing.
Los Angeles to San Francisco
The return direction, soonest first.
Not the dates you need?
We email you as soon as another San Francisco to Los Angeles empty leg posts.
How empty legs from San Francisco to Los Angeles work
An empty leg from San Francisco to Los Angeles is a repositioning flight. A jet that finished a job in San Francisco has to get to Los Angeles for its next one, or back to base, and the operator would rather sell the flight than fly the cabin empty. The price is for the whole aircraft, not per seat, and it is a fraction of a normal charter for the same aircraft, same crew, same operator.
The date is set by the aircraft's schedule, not yours, and it can move or be withdrawn when the operator's plans change. A listing that shows a date with no time means the departure is not fixed yet; you settle it with the operator when you request. Legs appear anywhere from weeks to a day ahead.
UpLeg lists these legs free of charge. You request one, we confirm one final total with the operator before you agree to anything, and you pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg as your quote says. There is no membership, no deposit to ask and no card on file. Fixed dates or a round trip are a charter: ask for a quote and we come back with one total for the whole aircraft.
More in the FAQ, or read how UpLeg works.
Questions about San Francisco to Los Angeles empty legs
How long is a private jet flight from San Francisco to Los Angeles?
San Francisco to Los Angeles is 338 miles, about 1 hour of flying. The exact block time depends on the aircraft on the leg; each listing shows its own estimate.
Which airports do San Francisco to Los Angeles empty legs use?
Today's legs leave from San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport (OAK), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and San Carlos Airport (SQL) and land at Van Nuys Airport (VNY), John Wayne Orange County International Airport (SNA) and Camarillo International Airport. Each listing names its exact airports.
What does a San Francisco to Los Angeles empty leg cost?
Today's 15 San Francisco to Los Angeles legs are estimated at $3,000 to $32,000 for the whole aircraft, with estimates marked on each listing. Every price on the board is an estimated range. When you request a leg we confirm it with the operator and you get one final price before you book. You pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg; your quote says which.
What happens if the operator cancels the empty leg?
Operators occasionally reschedule or cancel. Whatever you paid the operator is refunded under their terms, and we help you chase it. Anything you paid UpLeg is refunded in full. Set a free alert at flyupleg.com/alerts?fromMetro=San%20Francisco&toMetro=Los%20Angeles and we email you the moment a matching leg posts.
More routes from San Francisco
More routes to Los Angeles
Airport pairs on this route
By city
More about this route
| Legs San Francisco to Los Angeles | 15 empty legs |
|---|---|
| Legs Los Angeles to San Francisco | 13 empty legs |
| Distance | 338 miles (293 nm), airport to airport |
| Flight time | About 1 hour, for the cabins flying it today |
| Leaving from | San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport (OAK), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and San Carlos Airport (SQL) |
| Landing at | Van Nuys Airport (VNY), John Wayne Orange County International Airport (SNA) and Camarillo International Airport |
| Cabin classes flying it | Turboprop, light jet, midsize, super midsize, heavy and ultra long range |
| Operator-listed prices | 5 of 15 legs; the other 10 carry a UpLeg estimate, marked as one |
| Board refresh | Every 30 minutes, from the operators' own listings |
| Price basis | The whole aircraft, not a seat; an estimated total until one final price is confirmed with you |
Every figure here is counted from the legs on this page at the moment it loaded, and the board is updated every 30 minutes from the operators' own listings, so the numbers move through the day. This is important because a count on one page is a snapshot, not a schedule: a leg can post or be withdrawn between two visits, and the newest listing change is stamped below. Whether a price is operator-listed or a UpLeg estimate is essential to know before you compare two legs, so the table counts both.
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How to book an empty leg from San Francisco to Los Angeles
- Step 1. Pick a leg. Open any row above for the aircraft, the seats, the date or departure window and the estimated total. A date with no time means the operator has not fixed the departure yet; you settle it with them when you request.
- Step 2. Request it. Add your name, email and mobile number and click Request. No account is needed. You get a reference straight away. There is no deposit, no membership and no card on file, and a request is not a booking: nothing is owed until you have agreed to a total.
- Step 3. Get one final price. We confirm availability and the total with the operator and send you one final price for the whole aircraft, with the operator named, before you agree to anything.
- Step 4. Confirm with the operator. Agree to a short set of terms on your booking page and pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg as your quote says. The departure time and the meeting point at the airport are settled with the operator.
- Step 5. Or set an alert. If nothing on this page fits, set a free alert for San Francisco to Los Angeles and we email you when a leg posts.
Empty leg, charter or jet card?
An empty leg fits flexible dates on a route an aircraft is already flying; a charter fits fixed dates, round trips and groups; a jet card is prepaid hours, which UpLeg does not sell. The table compares the three on what you buy, what you pay, what you commit to and who flies you.
| Aspect | Empty leg | Private jet charter | Jet card |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you buy | The whole aircraft on a flight it was making anyway | The whole aircraft for a trip built around you | Prepaid hours or dollars, drawn down per flight |
| Price | Up to 75% under retail charter; one final price before you book | Retail, quoted per trip; one final price before you book | Fixed hourly rates, paid in advance |
| Route and dates | Set by the aircraft's schedule | Yours | Yours, with the program's notice period |
| Commitment to ask | None: no deposit, no card on file | None: a quote is free | A prepaid balance, often on a term |
| Who flies you | An FAA-certificated Part 135 operator, named before you pay | An FAA-certificated Part 135 operator, named before you pay | The program's own or partner operators |
| Can it change | Yes: the operator can withdraw the leg if its schedule changes | Rarely: the trip is yours once confirmed | Rarely |
| Best for | Flexible dates on a common route, one direction | Fixed dates, round trips, groups, unusual routes | Frequent flyers who want a fixed rate |
| On UpLeg | The live board at flyupleg.com/flights | A free quote at flyupleg.com/charter | Not offered |
The legs on this page by cabin class, counted from the rows above. Cabin class is the board's own grouping from the aircraft the operator named, so a leg without a named aircraft is counted on the page but not in this table.
| Cabin class | Legs now | Operator-listed | Example route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turboprop | 4 | 0 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
| Light jet | 3 | 0 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
| Midsize | 2 | 1 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
| Super midsize | 3 | 2 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
| Heavy | 2 | 2 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
| Ultra long range | 1 | 0 | San Francisco to Los Angeles |
Key terms
These terms mean the same thing on every UpLeg page and in every quote. On the board, listed means that the operator published the price itself, and estimated means that UpLeg computed the range and marked it as an estimate. Part 135 refers to the FAA rules an operator flies under, and Part 295 refers to the Department of Transportation rules UpLeg works under as an air charter broker. This is important because the operator, not UpLeg, flies the aircraft and holds operational control of every flight.
- Empty leg
- An empty leg is a private jet flight that has to happen anyway, with nobody on board, because the aircraft is repositioning after one charter or before the next. Operators sell that flight for the whole aircraft at a fraction of the charter price, on the aircraft's own route and dates. More on empty legs
- Estimated total
- An estimated total is UpLeg's estimate, shown as a range and marked as an estimate, for an empty leg the operator posted without a price. Every booking gets one final price for the whole aircraft before you agree to anything. More on estimated totals
- Operator-listed price
- An operator-listed price is the price the operator itself published for an empty leg. On the UpLeg board it is shown as listed; a leg without one carries an estimated total instead. More on operator-listed prices
- Flexible departure window
- A flexible departure window is a range of days on which an operator will fly a given empty leg, because the aircraft only needs to reach its next job by a deadline. The exact departure time is set with the operator when you book. More on flexible departure windows
- Private jet charter
- A private jet charter is the rental of a whole aircraft with crew for one trip on your own route and dates, priced per trip. UpLeg quotes charters through FAA-certificated Part 135 operators for any US-touching trip, one-way or round trip. More on private jet charters
- Part 135 operator
- A Part 135 operator is an air carrier the FAA has certificated under 14 CFR Part 135 to fly on-demand charter with its own aircraft, pilots and maintenance program. Every empty leg and charter on UpLeg is flown by one. More on Part 135 operators
Terms as of