Santa Barbara (SBA) to Sacramento (SMF): On-Time Performance
Data through May 2026
When you fly SBA to SMF matters as much as anything else about the booking: the route swung from 100% on-time in May 2025 to just 65% in October 2025. Across the full period the route averages 87% on-time against a national 78%. Morning departures also hold up better than evening ones (93% vs 83%), which matters most in the rough months.
- On-time
- 87%
- arrived <15 min late
- Avg delay
- 8 min
- completed flights
- Cancelled
- 0.6%
- Flights/day
- 1.0
- last 12 months
- Duration
- 1h 20m
- scheduled
- Distance
- 310 mi
Monthly on-time trend
Best time to fly from SBA to SMF
Aim for departures around 5 p.m. (94% on-time); avoid 6 p.m. departures (78%).
By day of week
| Day | On-time | Avg delay |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | 83% | 11 min |
| Tuesdaybest | 94% | 4 min |
| Wednesday | 90% | 4 min |
| Thursday | 82% | 11 min |
| Friday | 82% | 17 min |
| Saturday | 94% | 4 min |
| Sunday | 87% | 6 min |
What causes delays on this route
Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft79%
- Airline operations17%
- National airspace system5%
Frequently asked questions
- How often are flights from SBA to SMF delayed?
- 13% of SBA–SMF flights arrived 15 or more minutes late (the US DOT definition of a delay) between 2024-06 and 2026-05. The average arrival delay across completed flights was 8 minutes.
- What is the best time of day to fly from SBA to SMF?
- Departures around 5 p.m. have the best record (94% on-time), while departures around 6 p.m. have the worst (78%). As on most US routes, delays accumulate through the day, so earlier flights are generally safer.
- How long is the flight from SBA to SMF?
- The scheduled SBA–SMF flight time averages 1h 20m over 310 miles. Actual arrival times vary — flights on this route land 15+ minutes late 13% of the time.
- How often are SBA to SMF flights cancelled?
- 0.6% of scheduled flights on this route were cancelled between 2024-06 and 2026-05, at or below the national rate of 1.6%.
- What is the worst month to fly from SBA to SMF?
- October 2025 was the roughest month in this dataset, with only 65% of arrivals on time. The best was May 2025 at 100%. If your dates are flexible, that 36-point gap is worth planning around.
Explore related pages
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Based on 710 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.