SMF to SBA flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Sacramento International Airport to Santa Barbara Municipal Airport · 310 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SMF or SBA 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 Santa Barbara (SBA) arrived on time 89% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.8% were cancelled, and 2% arrived an hour or more late.
- Southwest Airlines is the only airline reporting nonstop flights on this route.
- Departures scheduled around 1pm did best (97% on time); around 11am did worst (65%).
- Wednesday was the most reliable day to fly (98% on time) and Friday the least (82%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was late-arriving aircraft (38%).
Which airline is most on time from SMF to SBA?
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 | 89% | 0.8% | 6 min | 2.5% | 366 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 7am96%70 flights
- 8am95%93 flights
- 9am88%92 flights
- 10am92%13 flights
- 11am65%37 flights
- 1pm97%38 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday88%0.0% cancelled
- Tuesday87%0.0% cancelled
- Wednesday98%1.9% cancelled
- Thursday92%0.0% cancelled
- Friday82%1.9% cancelled
- Saturday88%1.9% cancelled
- Sunday90%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.
- Late-arriving aircraft38%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)32%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion30%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Air traffic control & airport congestion67%
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)33%
- Extreme weather0%
- Security0%
SMF to SBA: common questions
- How often are SMF to SBA flights on time?
- 89% 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 Santa Barbara cancelled?
- 0.8% of scheduled flights were cancelled (3 of 366).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 6 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 49 min behind schedule on average, and 2.5% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SMF?
- Flights on this route spent 11 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SBA to SMF — 83% 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 → SBA, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.