FlightRecord

Sacramento (SMF) to Dallas (DAL): On-Time Performance

Data through May 2026

The calendar drives reliability on SMF–DAL. February 2025 flights landed on schedule 96% of the time, but August 2025 dropped to 68% — a gap of 28 points. Across the full period the route averages 77% on-time against a national 78%.

On-time
77%
arrived <15 min late
Avg delay
12 min
completed flights
Cancelled
0.7%
Flights/day
1.8
last 12 months
Duration
3h 17m
scheduled
Distance
1,442 mi

Monthly on-time trend

Monthly on-time percentage for SMF to DAL flights50%75%100%June 2024: 69% on-time (49 flights)69Jun 2024July 2024: 70% on-time (50 flights)70August 2024: 77% on-time (62 flights)77September 2024: 80% on-time (59 flights)80Sep 2024October 2024: 94% on-time (49 flights)94November 2024: 79% on-time (58 flights)79December 2024: 69% on-time (62 flights)69Dec 2024January 2025: 93% on-time (42 flights)93February 2025: 96% on-time (45 flights)96March 2025: 73% on-time (56 flights)73Mar 2025April 2025: 78% on-time (58 flights)78May 2025: 83% on-time (62 flights)83June 2025: 68% on-time (60 flights)68Jun 2025July 2025: 71% on-time (62 flights)71August 2025: 68% on-time (53 flights)68September 2025: 78% on-time (51 flights)78Sep 2025October 2025: 73% on-time (56 flights)73November 2025: 75% on-time (58 flights)75December 2025: 69% on-time (62 flights)69Dec 2025January 2026: 80% on-time (41 flights)80February 2026: 87% on-time (46 flights)87March 2026: 73% on-time (52 flights)73Mar 2026April 2026: 84% on-time (58 flights)84May 2026: 71% on-time (62 flights)71

Best time to fly from SMF to DAL

Aim for departures around 7 a.m. (98% on-time); avoid 1 p.m. departures (47%).

On-time percentage by scheduled departure hour, SMF to DAL5 a.m.: 93% on-time (417 flights)56 a.m.: 94% on-time (165 flights)67 a.m.: 98% on-time (40 flights)79 a.m.: 88% on-time (58 flights)912 p.m.: 88% on-time (40 flights)121 p.m.: 47% on-time (81 flights)132 p.m.: 61% on-time (141 flights)143 p.m.: 57% on-time (202 flights)154 p.m.: 60% on-time (73 flights)165 p.m.: 59% on-time (29 flights)176 p.m.: 58% on-time (26 flights)18scheduled departure hour

By day of week

DayOn-timeAvg delay
Monday73%12 min
Tuesday79%12 min
Wednesdaybest80%11 min
Thursday78%14 min
Friday78%13 min
Saturday80%11 min
Sunday73%15 min

What causes delays on this route

Share of total delay minutes by cause, as reported by carriers to the US DOT.

  • Late-arriving aircraft50%
  • Airline operations29%
  • National airspace system20%
  • Weather1%

Frequently asked questions

How often are flights from SMF to DAL delayed?
23% of SMF–DAL 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 12 minutes.
What is the best time of day to fly from SMF to DAL?
Departures around 7 a.m. have the best record (98% on-time), while departures around 1 p.m. have the worst (47%). As on most US routes, delays accumulate through the day, so earlier flights are generally safer.
How long is the flight from SMF to DAL?
The scheduled SMF–DAL flight time averages 3h 17m over 1,442 miles. Actual arrival times vary — flights on this route land 15+ minutes late 23% of the time.
How often are SMF to DAL flights cancelled?
0.7% 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 SMF to DAL?
August 2025 was the roughest month in this dataset, with only 68% of arrivals on time. The best was February 2025 at 96%. If your dates are flexible, that 28-point gap is worth planning around.

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Based on 1,313 flights, 2024-06–2026-05. Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Updated 2026-07-01.