ORD to SBA flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Chicago O'Hare International Airport to Santa Barbara Municipal Airport · 1,803 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at ORD or SBA right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Chicago (ORD) to Santa Barbara (SBA) arrived on time 75% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 0% were cancelled, and 6% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (94% on time) and Sunday the least (44%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (42%).
Which airline is most on time from ORD to SBA?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines | 75% | 0.0% | 15 min | 6.0% | 117 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
Not enough departures across different hours to compare.
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday82%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday82%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday94%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday82%0.0% cancelled
- Friday59%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday81%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday44%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 aircraft42%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion33%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)26%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
No cancellation causes recorded in this period.
ORD to SBA: common questions
- How often are ORD to SBA flights on time?
- 75% 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 Chicago to Santa Barbara cancelled?
- 0.0% of scheduled flights were cancelled (0 of 117).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 15 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 57 min behind schedule on average, and 6.0% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at ORD?
- Flights on this route spent 30 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SBA to ORD — 55% on time
More flights from Chicago
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: ORD → SBA, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.