SFO to PSP flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Francisco International Airport to Palm Springs International Airport · 421 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SFO or PSP right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from San Francisco (SFO) to Palm Springs (PSP) arrived on time 76% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, worse than the 78% national average.
- 1% were cancelled, and 11% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (88% on time); SkyWest Airlines was the least (74%).
- Departures scheduled around 8am did best (93% on time); around 12pm did worst (53%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (83% on time) and Monday the least (70%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was air traffic control & airport congestion (44%).
Which airline is most on time from SFO to PSP?
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 | 88% | 0.0% | 8 min | 3.9% | 307 |
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 74% | 1.2% | 21 min | 11.5% | 2,206 |
| Frontier Airlines | 73% | 0.0% | 20 min | 9.1% | 22 |
| Alaska Airlines | 58% | 0.0% | 29 min | 16.7% | 12 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 8am93%382 flights
- 9am92%130 flights
- 10am57%69 flights
- 12pm53%146 flights
- 1pm71%319 flights
- 2pm72%154 flights
- 3pm67%120 flights
- 4pm73%317 flights
- 5pm79%61 flights
- 6pm81%198 flights
- 7pm77%147 flights
- 8pm68%256 flights
- 9pm75%222 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday70%1.3% cancelled
- Tuesday83%0.6% cancelled
- Wednesday76%0.3% cancelled
- Thursday72%1.0% cancelled
- Friday75%0.2% cancelled
- Saturday82%1.6% cancelled
- Sunday74%2.0% 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 congestion44%
- Late-arriving aircraft34%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)20%
- Extreme weather2%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion50%
- Extreme weather42%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)8%
- Security0%
SFO to PSP: common questions
- How often are SFO to PSP flights on time?
- 76% 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 San Francisco to Palm Springs cancelled?
- 1.0% of scheduled flights were cancelled (26 of 2,547).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 19 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 76 min behind schedule on average, and 10.6% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SFO?
- Flights on this route spent 22 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: PSP to SFO — 63% on time
More flights from San Francisco
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: SFO → PSP, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.