LGB to SMF flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Long Beach International Airport to Sacramento International Airport · 387 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at LGB or SMF right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Long Beach (LGB) to Sacramento (SMF) arrived on time 88% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.4% were cancelled, and 3% arrived an hour or more late.
- Southwest Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 6am did best (99% on time); around 4pm did worst (72%).
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (95% on time) and Sunday the least (83%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (81%).
Which airline is most on time from LGB to SMF?
Ranked by on-time arrival rate. Regional airlines fly under their partner's brand (e.g. SkyWest for Delta Connection or United Express).
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | 1 hr+ late | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 88% | 0.4% | 7 min | 3.0% | 1,869 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am99%88 flights
- 7am97%217 flights
- 8am95%73 flights
- 9am91%136 flights
- 10am95%199 flights
- 11am96%73 flights
- 12pm84%102 flights
- 1pm92%127 flights
- 2pm87%127 flights
- 3pm81%57 flights
- 4pm72%145 flights
- 5pm90%111 flights
- 6pm80%137 flights
- 7pm78%232 flights
- 8pm76%45 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday85%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday92%0.4% cancelled
- Wednesday95%0.7% cancelled
- Thursday87%0.4% cancelled
- Friday85%0.7% cancelled
- Saturday87%0.5% cancelled
- Sunday83%0.0% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Late-arriving aircraft81%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)11%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion7%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Extreme weather57%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)43%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
LGB to SMF: common questions
- How often are LGB to SMF flights on time?
- 88% of flights arrived less than 15 minutes late in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, compared with 78% for all US flights.
- How often are flights from Long Beach to Sacramento cancelled?
- 0.4% of scheduled flights were cancelled (7 of 1,869).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 7 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 48 min behind schedule on average, and 3.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at LGB?
- Flights on this route spent 11 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SMF to LGB — 86% on time
More flights from Long Beach
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: LGB → SMF, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.