SMF to SEA flight delays & on-time performance
Nonstop flights from Sacramento International Airport to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport · 605 miles · Aug 2025 – Jul 2026
No FAA-reported ground stops or delays at SMF or SEA 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 Seattle (SEA) arrived on time 83% of the time in Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, better than the 78% national average.
- 0.3% were cancelled, and 4% arrived an hour or more late.
- SkyWest Airlines was the most punctual airline here (87% on time); Southwest Airlines was the least (78%).
- Departures scheduled around 5am did best (97% on time); around 8am did worst (71%).
- Tuesday was the most reliable day to fly (86% on time) and Thursday the least (79%).
- The largest source of delay minutes was airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling) (41%).
Which airline is most on time from SMF to SEA?
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest AirlinesRegional airline operating flights for United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle and Alaska. | 87% | 0.3% | 8 min | 3.4% | 1,899 |
| Alaska Airlines | 80% | 0.5% | 10 min | 3.4% | 1,352 |
| Southwest Airlines | 78% | 0.2% | 11 min | 4.9% | 1,139 |
Best time of day to fly
On-time arrival rate by scheduled departure hour (local time).
- 5am97%154 flights
- 6am91%569 flights
- 7am90%282 flights
- 8am71%273 flights
- 9am75%61 flights
- 10am89%167 flights
- 11am86%462 flights
- 12pm84%237 flights
- 1pm90%343 flights
- 2pm74%229 flights
- 3pm71%50 flights
- 4pm86%183 flights
- 5pm78%418 flights
- 6pm82%172 flights
- 7pm72%443 flights
- 8pm76%241 flights
- 9pm80%97 flights
Best day of the week
On-time arrival rate by day of departure.
- Monday83%0.1% cancelled
- Tuesday86%0.3% cancelled
- Wednesday85%0.0% cancelled
- Thursday79%0.1% cancelled
- Friday81%1.0% cancelled
- Saturday85%0.2% cancelled
- Sunday80%0.3% 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)41%
- Late-arriving aircraft27%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion24%
- Extreme weather9%
- Security0%
Why flights are cancelled
Share of cancellations by reason.
- Airline (crew, maintenance, cleaning, fueling)50%
- Extreme weather43%
- Air traffic control & airport congestion7%
- Security0%
SMF to SEA: common questions
- How often are SMF to SEA flights on time?
- 83% 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 Seattle cancelled?
- 0.3% of scheduled flights were cancelled (14 of 4,390).
- How long are typical delays?
- Across all flights the average arrival delay was 9 min (early arrivals count as zero). Flights that were late arrived 48 min behind schedule on average, and 3.8% of flights were an hour or more late.
- How long is taxi time at SMF?
- Flights on this route spent 17 min taxiing from the gate to takeoff on average.
Related routes
Return trip: SEA to SMF — 82% 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 → SEA, nonstop flights by US airlines that report to the DOT. How we calculate this.