SMF to HNL flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Sacramento International Airport to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport · 2,462 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SMF or HNL right now. Individual flights can still be delayed by the airline; check with your airline for your flight.
Key facts
- Flights from Sacramento (SMF) to Honolulu (HNL) arrived on time 81% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.1% were cancelled, and 3% arrived an hour or more late.
- Southwest Airlines was the most punctual airline here (87% on time); Hawaiian Airlines was the least (73%).
- Departures scheduled around 1pm did best (88% on time); around 9am did worst (69%).
- Thursday was the most reliable day to fly (87% on time) and Saturday the least (73%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (85%).
Which airline is most on time from SMF to HNL?
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 | 87% | 0.0% | 6 min | 1.9% | 365 |
| Alaska Airlines | 77% | 0.5% | 18 min | 3.8% | 212 |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 73% | 0.0% | 18 min | 5.2% | 153 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 7am82%114 flights
- 8am79%313 flights
- 9am69%88 flights
- 11am84%25 flights
- 12pm87%97 flights
- 1pm88%92 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday82%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday83%1.0% cancelled
- Wednesday82%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday87%0.0% cancelled
- Friday79%0.0% cancelled
- Saturday73%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday82%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.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)85%
- Late-arriving aircraft8%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion6%
- Extreme weather1%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)100%
- Extreme weather0%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion0%
- Security0%
SMF to HNL: common questions
- How often are SMF to HNL flights on time?
- 81% 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 Sacramento to Honolulu cancelled?
- 0.1% of scheduled flights were cancelled (1 of 730).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 12 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 56 min behind schedule on average, and 3.2% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SMF?
- Flights on this route spent 13 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: HNL to SMF — 78% on time
More flights from Sacramento
Data: U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026 (12 months). Latest month published by BTS: July 2026. Route: SMF → HNL, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.