OnTimeStats

Airport on-time performance

Sacramento

Data through May 2026Source: US DOT · BTS
On-time rate81%flights departing here that arrived on time
p90 delay30 min1 in 10 departures is worse (tail risk)
Cancelled0.7%of scheduled departures
Left the gate on time81%departures that pushed back within 15 min of schedule (DepDel15)

based on 57,160 flights over the last 12 months. On-time means arriving within 15 minutes (BTS standard).

As a connection hub

Arriving here (inbound performance)

These figures reflect inbound flights arriving at this airport — relevant for connections and layovers.

79%arrived on time here
(within 15 min, inbound flights)
  • On time79%
  • 15–59 min late14%
  • 1–2 hr late4%
  • 2 hr+ late2%
  • Cancelled or diverted1%

Arrival outcomes for inbound flights. Last segment = cancelled or diverted.

Bad day: 1 in 10 flights arrives more than 35 min late.

By airline

Carriers departing here (last 12 months)

Delay = arrival delay (ArrDel15-based)

  • Delta Air Linesbest
    On-time90%
    Medianon time
    p9010 min
    Cancel1.0%
    Flights3,353
  • Envoy Air
    On-time89%
    Medianon time
    p9025 min
    Cancel0.0%
    Flights38
  • United Airlines
    On-time85%
    Medianon time
    p9025 min
    Cancel0.6%
    Flights4,235
  • SkyWest Airlines
    On-time83%
    Medianon time
    p9030 min
    Cancel0.8%
    Flights9,281
  • Spirit Airlines
    On-time81%
    Medianon time
    p9035 min
    Cancel2.0%
    Flights249
  • Alaska Airlines
    On-time80%
    Medianon time
    p9025 min
    Cancel0.8%
    Flights1,909
  • American Airlines
    On-time80%
    Medianon time
    p9035 min
    Cancel1.7%
    Flights3,607
  • Southwest Airlines
    On-time80%
    Medianon time
    p9030 min
    Cancel0.5%
    Flights31,398
  • Hawaiian Airlines
    On-time80%
    Medianon time
    p9030 min
    Cancel0.7%
    Flights428
  • Frontier Airlines
    On-time67%
    Medianon time
    p9065 min
    Cancel1.7%
    Flights60
  • JetBlue Airways
    On-time63%
    Medianon time
    p9085 min
    Cancel1.4%
    Flights214

Over time

On-time trend

By season

On-time rate by month

When it gets busy

Busiest times at SMF

Historically, departures at SMF peak 5–10 a.m. — 34% of scheduled flights leave in that block.

SMF is busier on weekdays — a typical weekday sees about 11% more departures than a weekend day.

  • Midnight–5 a.m.0%
  • 5–10 a.m.34%
  • 10 a.m.–2 p.m.25%
  • 2–5 p.m.16%
  • 5–8 p.m.15%
  • 8 p.m.–midnight11%

Share of 167,002 scheduled departures by planned departure time, 2023-06 .. 2026-05. Historical averages from BTS data — not live airport status.

When flights don't go

Why flights were cancelled

  • Airline39%
  • Weather44%
  • Air traffic (NAS)18%
  • Security0%

Most cancellations here are attributed to Weather. Shares are among 391 cancellations with a reported cause (BTS reports causes from June 2003).

Where flights go

Busiest routes

SMF → LAX→SMF → SAN→SMF → PHX→SMF → SEA→SMF → LAS→SMF → DEN→SMF → BUR→SMF → ONT→SMF → SNA→SMF → PDX→

Side by side

Compare this airport

Compare with Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airporthead-to-head on-time→Compare with Chicago O'Hare International Airporthead-to-head on-time→Compare with Dallas Fort Worth International Airporthead-to-head on-time→Compare with Denver International Airporthead-to-head on-time→

Will you make a connection at SMF? →

Keep exploring

Related guides

When to arrive at the airportguide→Worst airports for delaysguide→

Methodology

A flight is on time when it arrives within 15 minutes of schedule — the US DOT / BTS standard. Median and p90(the “1-in-10 bad day”) are read from the full arrival-delay distribution, never averaged across periods.

Figures cover a carrier’s own BTS-coded flights. Cells below ~200 flights are flagged as limited data. All numbers are pre-computed from public BTS On-Time Performance data.