SFO to SNA flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from San Francisco International Airport to John Wayne Orange County International Airport · 372 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SFO or SNA 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 Santa Ana (SNA) arrived on time 79% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 1.3% were cancelled, and 6% arrived an hour or more late.
- United Airlines was the most punctual airline here (83% on time); SkyWest Airlines was the least (78%).
- Departures scheduled around 7am did best (92% on time); around 6pm did worst (68%).
- Saturday was the most reliable day to fly (86% on time) and Friday the least (75%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (43%).
Which airline is most on time from SFO to SNA?
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 | 83% | 0.5% | 10 min | 3.8% | 1,012 |
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 78% | 1.6% | 14 min | 6.7% | 3,515 |
| Frontier Airlines | 69% | 0.7% | 25 min | 11.3% | 151 |
| Alaska Airlines | 61% | 0.0% | 23 min | 5.3% | 38 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 6am96%99 flights
- 7am92%489 flights
- 8am83%166 flights
- 9am80%380 flights
- 10am75%543 flights
- 11am79%122 flights
- 12pm72%425 flights
- 1pm77%427 flights
- 2pm69%202 flights
- 3pm82%324 flights
- 4pm72%473 flights
- 5pm79%246 flights
- 6pm68%182 flights
- 7pm88%447 flights
- 8pm80%191 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday77%1.3% cancelled
- Tuesday83%0.8% cancelled
- Wednesday80%1.1% cancelled
- Thursday77%1.7% cancelled
- Friday75%1.5% cancelled
- Saturday86%1.0% cancelled
- Sunday77%1.6% 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 aircraft43%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion32%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)19%
- Extreme weather6%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion64%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)20%
- Extreme weather16%
- Security0%
SFO to SNA: common questions
- How often are SFO to SNA flights on time?
- 79% 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 Santa Ana cancelled?
- 1.3% of scheduled flights were cancelled (61 of 4,716).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 13 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 60 min behind schedule on average, and 6.2% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SFO?
- Flights on this route spent 21 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SNA to SFO — 68% 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 → SNA, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.