FlightRecord

Sacramento International Airport (SMF): Delays & On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

Sacramento International Airport (SMF) in Sacramento, CA is a middle-of-the-pack performer: 82% of departures are on time, within a few points of the national 78%. It hosts 11 airlines flying 157 departures a day to 46 destinations, with cancellations at 0.7%.

Departures on-time
82%
left <15 min late
Avg dep delay
12 min
Arrivals on-time
81%
Cancelled
0.7%
Destinations
46
nonstop
Airlines
11

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly departure on-time percentage at SMF50%75%100%June 2024: 78% on-time (4,756 flights)78Jun 2024July 2024: 78% on-time (5,021 flights)78August 2024: 83% on-time (5,055 flights)83September 2024: 86% on-time (4,870 flights)86Sep 2024October 2024: 86% on-time (5,014 flights)86November 2024: 85% on-time (4,658 flights)85December 2024: 78% on-time (4,534 flights)78Dec 2024January 2025: 87% on-time (4,148 flights)87February 2025: 85% on-time (3,976 flights)85March 2025: 84% on-time (4,827 flights)84Mar 2025April 2025: 85% on-time (4,938 flights)85May 2025: 83% on-time (5,191 flights)83June 2025: 78% on-time (5,331 flights)78Jun 2025July 2025: 78% on-time (5,494 flights)78August 2025: 82% on-time (5,089 flights)82September 2025: 84% on-time (4,804 flights)84Sep 2025October 2025: 81% on-time (4,937 flights)81November 2025: 82% on-time (4,662 flights)82December 2025: 78% on-time (4,531 flights)78Dec 2025January 2026: 85% on-time (4,130 flights)85February 2026: 83% on-time (3,935 flights)83March 2026: 82% on-time (4,630 flights)82Mar 2026April 2026: 82% on-time (4,672 flights)82May 2026: 79% on-time (4,945 flights)79

Best time of day to depart from SMF

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour at SMF5 a.m.: 95% on-time (5,861 flights)56 a.m.: 94% on-time (11,098 flights)67 a.m.: 92% on-time (7,587 flights)78 a.m.: 91% on-time (7,088 flights)89 a.m.: 90% on-time (6,971 flights)910 a.m.: 87% on-time (7,536 flights)1011 a.m.: 83% on-time (6,933 flights)1112 p.m.: 81% on-time (7,293 flights)121 p.m.: 77% on-time (6,743 flights)132 p.m.: 75% on-time (7,198 flights)143 p.m.: 70% on-time (5,141 flights)154 p.m.: 74% on-time (5,836 flights)165 p.m.: 75% on-time (5,013 flights)176 p.m.: 71% on-time (5,465 flights)187 p.m.: 75% on-time (6,495 flights)198 p.m.: 72% on-time (4,923 flights)209 p.m.: 66% on-time (2,549 flights)2110 p.m.: 85% on-time (1,680 flights)2211 p.m.: 74% on-time (2,596 flights)23scheduled departure hour

Busiest routes from SMF

RouteFlights/12moOn-timeAvg delay
SMF → LAX5,60287%9 min
SMF → SAN5,18275%15 min
SMF → SEA4,43982%10 min
SMF → LAS4,38082%12 min
SMF → DEN3,82783%11 min
SMF → PHX3,71284%13 min
SMF → BUR2,67984%10 min
SMF → SNA2,31985%7 min

Most reliable routes

  1. SMF → IAD92%
  2. SMF → MSP90%
  3. SMF → ATL90%
  4. SMF → KOA90%
  5. SMF → DTW89%

Most delay-prone routes

  1. SMF → JFK68%
  2. SMF → SFO74%
  3. SMF → EWR74%
  4. SMF → SAN75%
  5. SMF → DAL77%

Airline performance at SMF

AirlineOn-time departuresAvg delayFlights
Envoy Air90%7 min300
Delta Air Lines90%9 min6,764
United Airlines88%10 min8,512
Hawaiian Airlines87%13 min1,738
SkyWest Airlines87%10 min18,773
Alaska Airlines86%9 min3,502
American Airlines81%20 min7,366
Frontier Airlines81%14 min1,513
Spirit Airlines80%14 min1,810
Southwest Airlines79%12 min63,316
JetBlue Airways62%45 min554

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights delayed at SMF?
18% of departures from Sacramento International Airport left 15+ minutes late between 2024-06 and 2026-05, with an average departure delay of 12 minutes. The national on-time average over the same period was 78%.
What is the best time of day to depart from SMF?
Flights scheduled around 5 a.m. depart on time 95% of the time at SMF, versus 66% around 9 p.m.. Booking before noon is the usual rule of thumb here.
What is the worst month for delays at SMF?
In this dataset, December 2025 was the weakest month at SMF, with 78% of departures on time.
How often are flights cancelled at SMF?
0.7% of scheduled departures from SMF were cancelled in this period, compared with a national rate of 1.6%.

Popular route pages from this airport

Based on 114,148 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.