Route Reliability

Route reliability

Seattle (SEA) to Sacramento (SMF): which airline is most on time?

On-time arrivals, cancellations and long delays for every airline that reported nonstop flights from Seattle, WA (SEA) to Sacramento, CA (SMF), September 2025 to August 2026.

Historical performance Official DOT data through August 2026 · Not live flight status

Seattle, WASacramento, CA

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Three-letter airport codes, nonstop U.S. domestic flights. One direction at a time.

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

SEA to SMF

Seattle, WA to Sacramento, CA

On time
81.6%vs 75.6% U.S. average Better than average
Cancelled
0.4%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
4.2%vs 8.1% U.S. average Better than average
Scheduled flights
4,387in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
SkyWest Airlines88.6% on time · 1,839 flights

On time more often than the U.S. average, with fewer cancellations.

Compared with all U.S. flights, September 2025 to August 2026. “About average” means within 1.5 points for on time, 0.3 for cancelled and 1 for 60+ minutes late.

Airlines on this route

Ranked by on-time arrival

Airlines from SEA to SMF, September 2025 to August 2026. Rates are shares of all scheduled flights.
Airline On time Cancelled 60+ min late Avg delay when late Diverted Flights
1. SkyWest Airlines Operating carrier; sold as United Express, Delta Connection, American Eagle, Alaska Most reliable 88.6% 0.3% 3.3% 63 min 0.3% 1,839
2. Alaska Airlines 79.6% 0.6% 3.8% 44 min 0.1% 1,409
3. Southwest Airlines 72.9% 0.4% 6.1% 48 min 0.3% 1,139

On time = arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. Avg delay when late = average arrival delay of flights 15+ minutes late. "Most reliable" needs at least 300 flights in 12 months. Tap a heading to sort.

What this means

SkyWest Airlines has the strongest record on this route.

  • SkyWest Airlines had the best on-time record from Seattle (SEA) to Sacramento (SMF): 88.6% of its 1,839 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 72.9% for Southwest Airlines.
  • 0.4% of flights on this route were cancelled, 1.5 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 4.2% of flights, about 1 in 24, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 50 min.
  • Overall, 81.6% of flights on this route arrived on time, 6.0 points higher than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, April was the most reliable month on this route (84.7% on time) and July the least reliable (74.5%).
  • Flights scheduled to depart before 6 am were the most punctual (94.9% on time); flights scheduled to depart 11 am to noon were the least (69.8%).
  • In the other direction, Sacramento (SMF) to Seattle (SEA), 82.7% of flights were on time and 0.3% were cancelled. Compare airlines SMF to SEA.

Best and worst months to fly SEA to SMF

Jan 80.8%
Feb 82.8%
Mar 82.0%
Apr 84.7%
May 80.3%
Jun 75.9%
Jul 74.5%
Aug 76.2%
Sep 79.8%
Oct 83.1%
Nov 80.9%
Dec 78.9%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 81.6%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 80.8% 928
February 82.8% 830
March 82.0% 950
April 84.7% 992
May 80.3% 1,127
June 75.9% 1,200
July 74.5% 1,301
August 76.2% 1,285
September 79.8% 1,184
October 83.1% 1,146
November 80.9% 1,013
December 78.9% 883
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
SkyWest Airlines April (91.7%) December (83.3%)
Alaska Airlines October (82.0%) January (68.6%)
Southwest Airlines January (86.5%) July (67.1%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 83.9%
Oct 84.3%
Nov 83.4%
Dec 73.1%
Jan 82.3%
Feb 84.7%
Mar 79.4%
Apr 87.5%
May 85.1%
Jun 83.8%
Jul 74.1%
Aug 78.1%
Share of scheduled flights on time U.S. average 75.6%
All airlines combined, September 2025 to August 2026. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Sep 2025 83.9% 398
Oct 2025 84.3% 375
Nov 2025 83.4% 350
Dec 2025 73.1% 294
Jan 2026 82.3% 311
Feb 2026 84.7% 281
Mar 2026 79.4% 350
Apr 2026 87.5% 369
May 2026 85.1% 389
Jun 2026 83.8% 408
Jul 2026 74.1% 429
Aug 2026 78.1% 433

Best and worst departure times

<6a 94.9%
6a 93.2%
7a 89.3%
8a 91.7%
9a 87.1%
10a 83.4%
11a 69.8%
12p 87.0%
1p 82.5%
2p 83.2%
3p 78.6%
4p 78.7%
5p 80.1%
6p 71.8%
7p 76.4%
8p 76.2%
9p 74.2%
10p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at SEA, September 2025 to August 2026. Hours with no scheduled flights are omitted. Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
Departing before 6 am 94.9% 217
Departing 6 am to 7 am 93.2% 148
Departing 7 am to 8 am 89.3% 178
Departing 8 am to 9 am 91.7% 361
Departing 9 am to 10 am 87.1% 294
Departing 10 am to 11 am 83.4% 368
Departing 11 am to noon 69.8% 291
Departing noon to 1 pm 87.0% 276
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 82.5% 80
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 83.2% 262
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 78.6% 126
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 78.7% 356
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 80.1% 156
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 71.8% 163
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 76.4% 543
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 76.2% 248
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 74.2% 298
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm Insufficient sample 22
Woman at an airport window watching a plane take off
Photo: Depositphotos (licensed stock, illustrative only). Credits

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
Nonstop scheduled flights from Seattle, WA (SEA) to Sacramento, CA (SMF), one direction. Airlines that report to the DOT only.
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.

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