SBA to DEN flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Santa Barbara Municipal Airport to Denver International Airport · 916 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SBA or DEN right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Santa Barbara (SBA) to Denver (DEN) arrived on time 84% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.7% were cancelled, and 6% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (85% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (83%).
- Departures scheduled around 6am did best (95% on time); around 12pm did worst (72%).
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (92% on time) and Saturday the least (80%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was air traffic control & airport congestion (43%).
Which airline is most on time from SBA to DEN?
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 | 85% | 0.6% | 11 min | 6.0% | 797 |
| Southwest Airlines | 83% | 0.7% | 10 min | 5.5% | 276 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am93%373 flights
- 6am95%119 flights
- 10am86%14 flights
- 11am88%43 flights
- 12pm72%137 flights
- 1pm78%277 flights
- 2pm69%16 flights
- 3pm54%24 flights
- 6pm75%61 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday80%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday89%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday92%0.7% cancelled
- Thursday84%0.0% cancelled
- Friday80%1.2% cancelled
- Saturday80%1.7% cancelled
- Sunday84%1.2% cancelled
On-time trend by month
Why flights are late
Share of delay minutes by cause, as reported by airlines to the DOT.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion43%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)31%
- Late-arriving aircraft23%
- Extreme weather3%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion57%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)29%
- Extreme weather14%
- Security0%
SBA to DEN: common questions
- How often are SBA to DEN flights on time?
- 84% 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 Santa Barbara to Denver cancelled?
- 0.7% of scheduled flights were cancelled (7 of 1,073).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 11 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 64 min behind schedule on average, and 5.8% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SBA?
- Flights on this route spent 14 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: DEN to SBA — 73% on time
More flights from Santa Barbara
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: SBA → DEN, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.