Airport reliability
Santa Barbara (SBA) on-time performance
How reliably flights leave Santa Barbara, CA (SBA) and reach their destinations, by airline, departure hour and month, September 2025 to August 2026.
Santa Barbara, CA8,648 departures in 12 months
- Departures on time
- 79.8% U.S. average 75.6%
- Cancelled
- 0.9% U.S. average 1.9%
- 60+ minutes late
- 7.1% U.S. average 8.1%
- Scheduled departures
- 8,648 12 months
What this means
SBA departures beat the U.S. average.
- 79.8% of the 8,648 scheduled departures from Santa Barbara (SBA) arrived at their destination on time, 4.2 points higher than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
- 0.9% of departures were cancelled (U.S. average 1.9%), and 7.1% arrived an hour or more late.
- Flights arriving at SBA were on time 80.2% of the time.
- Among airlines with at least 300 departures, Envoy Air was the most punctual from SBA (86.1%) and United Airlines the least (71.8%).
- Over the last 3 years, September was the most reliable month for departures from SBA (85.1% on time) and June the least reliable (78.0%).
- Cancellations peaked in February, when 2.9% of flights were cancelled.
- Flights scheduled to depart before 6 am were the most punctual (94.5% on time); flights scheduled to depart 8 pm to 9 pm were the least (30.7%).
Airlines at SBA
Ranked by on-time arrival
| Airline | On time | Cancelled | 60+ min late | Avg delay when late | Departures |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Envoy AirSold as American Eagle | 86.1% | 1.2% | 4.7% | 71 min | 404 |
| Southwest Airlines | 85.2% | 0.5% | 4.4% | 57 min | 1,875 |
| Delta Air Lines | 81.0% | 3.4% | 7.8% | 83 min | 268 |
| American Airlines | 80.9% | 1.1% | 7.2% | 146 min | 976 |
| SkyWest AirlinesSold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska | 80.2% | 1.0% | 7.1% | 73 min | 2,877 |
| Alaska Airlines | 80.2% | 0.9% | 5.8% | 55 min | 344 |
| United Airlines | 71.8% | 0.6% | 10.1% | 71 min | 1,904 |
Tap a heading to sort.
On-time rate by departure hour
Share of scheduled flights on time SBA average 79.8%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Departing before 6 am | 94.5% | 1,056 |
| Departing 6 am to 7 am | 90.5% | 1,268 |
| Departing 7 am to 8 am | 72.4% | 116 |
| Departing 8 am to 9 am | 66.3% | 202 |
| Departing 9 am to 10 am | 69.1% | 363 |
| Departing 10 am to 11 am | 77.8% | 481 |
| Departing 11 am to noon | 84.8% | 191 |
| Departing noon to 1 pm | 77.3% | 1,183 |
| Departing 1 pm to 2 pm | 73.7% | 630 |
| Departing 2 pm to 3 pm | 71.2% | 676 |
| Departing 3 pm to 4 pm | 77.0% | 178 |
| Departing 4 pm to 5 pm | 79.9% | 842 |
| Departing 5 pm to 6 pm | 88.0% | 225 |
| Departing 6 pm to 7 pm | 76.8% | 685 |
| Departing 7 pm to 8 pm | 77.9% | 399 |
| Departing 8 pm to 9 pm | 30.7% | 153 |
Best and worst months at SBA
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 79.8%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 83.8% | 1,767 |
| February | 81.3% | 1,673 |
| March | 81.5% | 1,943 |
| April | 79.1% | 1,992 |
| May | 80.2% | 2,218 |
| June | 78.0% | 2,162 |
| July | 78.1% | 2,256 |
| August | 78.6% | 2,164 |
| September | 85.1% | 1,941 |
| October | 83.5% | 2,071 |
| November | 81.8% | 1,988 |
| December | 81.3% | 1,883 |
Month by month, last 12 months
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
Show as table
| Period | On time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 82.3% | 671 |
| Oct 2025 | 82.5% | 747 |
| Nov 2025 | 77.1% | 717 |
| Dec 2025 | 77.2% | 683 |
| Jan 2026 | 84.0% | 664 |
| Feb 2026 | 85.9% | 616 |
| Mar 2026 | 84.5% | 734 |
| Apr 2026 | 79.3% | 733 |
| May 2026 | 78.6% | 816 |
| Jun 2026 | 77.3% | 752 |
| Jul 2026 | 79.3% | 745 |
| Aug 2026 | 71.8% | 770 |
Busiest routes from SBA
| To | On time | Cancelled | Airlines | Flights |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco (SFO) | 60.5% | 1.1% | 2 | 1,677 |
| Phoenix (PHX) | 84.6% | 1.0% | 4 | 1,432 |
| Salt Lake City (SLC) | 93.3% | 0.9% | 2 | 1,062 |
| Denver (DEN) | 84.4% | 0.7% | 2 | 1,058 |
| Las Vegas (LAS) | 86.1% | 0.6% | 1 | 890 |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 87.4% | 1.0% | 1 | 681 |
| Sacramento (SMF) | 83.0% | 0.5% | 1 | 365 |
| Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) | 74.5% | 1.4% | 2 | 364 |
| Seattle (SEA) | 80.2% | 0.9% | 1 | 344 |
| Oakland (OAK) | 90.6% | 0.3% | 1 | 297 |
| San Diego (SAN) | 61.3% | 1.3% | 2 | 150 |
| Chicago (ORD) | 53.4% | 0.0% | 1 | 148 |
| Atlanta (ATL) | 76.4% | 2.9% | 1 | 140 |
Sources & data dates
- Source
- U.S. DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Reporting Carrier On-Time Performance (1987-present)
- Period
- September 2025 to August 2026 (12 months); month-of-year patterns September 2023 to August 2026
- Data through
- August 2026
- Processed
- 2026-11-03
- Scope
- Scheduled nonstop domestic departures from Santa Barbara, CA (SBA) by airlines that report to the DOT.
- Method
- Rates use all scheduled flights as the denominator; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Figures based on fewer than 50 scheduled flights are suppressed. Full methodology.