SMF to LIH flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Sacramento International Airport to Lihue Airport · 2,508 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SMF or LIH 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 Lihue (LIH) arrived on time 86% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 1% were cancelled, and 2% arrived an hour or more late.
- Alaska Airlines was the most punctual airline here (89% on time); Hawaiian Airlines was the least (81%).
- Departures scheduled around 8am did best (89% on time); around 7am did worst (85%).
- Thursday was the most reliable day to fly (92% on time) and Tuesday the least (83%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (90%).
Which airline is most on time from SMF to LIH?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska Airlines | 89% | 0.0% | 12 min | 2.5% | 122 |
| Hawaiian Airlines | 81% | 2.3% | 10 min | 2.3% | 88 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 7am85%178 flights
- 8am89%19 flights
- 9am100%12 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Tuesday83%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday92%1.9% cancelled
- Friday83%0.0% cancelled
- Sunday86%1.9% 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)90%
- Extreme weather6%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion3%
- Security1%
- Late-arriving aircraft0%
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 LIH: common questions
- How often are SMF to LIH flights on time?
- 86% 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 Lihue cancelled?
- 1.0% of scheduled flights were cancelled (2 of 210).
- 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 73 min behind schedule on average, and 2.4% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SMF?
- Flights on this route spent 14 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: LIH to SMF — 81% 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 → LIH, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.