Route Reliability

Route reliability

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

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

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

Sacramento, CASeattle, WA

Check a route

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

Route at a glance · September 2025 to August 2026

SMF to SEA

Sacramento, CA to Seattle, WA

On time
82.7%vs 75.6% U.S. average Better than average
Cancelled
0.3%vs 1.9% U.S. average Better than average
60+ min late
3.5%vs 8.1% U.S. average Better than average
Scheduled flights
4,396in 12 months3 airlines
Most reliable airline
SkyWest Airlines87.2% on time · 1,851 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 SMF to SEA, 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 87.2% 0.3% 3.2% 57 min 0.2% 1,851
2. Alaska Airlines 80.5% 0.4% 3.3% 44 min 0.1% 1,407
3. Southwest Airlines 77.9% 0.2% 4.5% 42 min 0.0% 1,138

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 Sacramento (SMF) to Seattle (SEA): 87.2% of its 1,851 scheduled flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, compared with 77.9% for Southwest Airlines.
  • 0.3% of flights on this route were cancelled, 1.6 points lower than the U.S. average of 1.9%.
  • 3.5% of flights, about 1 in 29, arrived an hour or more late. When a flight was late (15+ minutes), the average arrival delay was 47 min.
  • Overall, 82.7% of flights on this route arrived on time, 7.1 points higher than the U.S. average of 75.6%.
  • Over the last 3 years, February was the most reliable month on this route (88.9% on time) and June the least reliable (75.0%).
  • Flights scheduled to depart before 6 am were the most punctual (97.4% on time); flights scheduled to depart 8 am to 9 am were the least (72.1%).
  • In the other direction, Seattle (SEA) to Sacramento (SMF), 81.6% of flights were on time and 0.4% were cancelled. Compare airlines SEA to SMF.

Best and worst months to fly SMF to SEA

Jan 84.0%
Feb 88.9%
Mar 85.6%
Apr 84.0%
May 80.6%
Jun 75.0%
Jul 79.6%
Aug 77.8%
Sep 80.6%
Oct 84.1%
Nov 87.0%
Dec 82.2%
Share of scheduled flights on time 12-month average 82.7%
All airlines combined, by calendar month, September 2023 to August 2026 (3 years pooled). Scale starts at zero.
Show as table
PeriodOn timeFlights
January 84.0% 919
February 88.9% 828
March 85.6% 954
April 84.0% 995
May 80.6% 1,126
June 75.0% 1,199
July 79.6% 1,301
August 77.8% 1,281
September 80.6% 1,181
October 84.1% 1,124
November 87.0% 987
December 82.2% 884
Best and worst calendar month by airline, September 2023 to August 2026.
AirlineBest monthWorst month
SkyWest Airlines February (91.0%) January (83.2%)
Alaska Airlines February (87.0%) June (70.5%)
Southwest Airlines January (87.8%) June (67.6%)

Month by month, last 12 months

Sep 79.1%
Oct 80.5%
Nov 84.5%
Dec 78.0%
Jan 87.7%
Feb 90.1%
Mar 85.7%
Apr 85.6%
May 85.6%
Jun 77.9%
Jul 80.4%
Aug 80.3%
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 79.1% 398
Oct 2025 80.5% 395
Nov 2025 84.5% 341
Dec 2025 78.0% 295
Jan 2026 87.7% 309
Feb 2026 90.1% 282
Mar 2026 85.7% 350
Apr 2026 85.6% 369
May 2026 85.6% 389
Jun 2026 77.9% 407
Jul 2026 80.4% 429
Aug 2026 80.3% 432

Best and worst departure times

<6a 97.4%
6a 91.1%
7a 87.8%
8a 72.1%
9a 80.0%
10a 86.6%
11a 85.5%
12p 85.8%
1p 88.6%
2p 76.0%
3p 70.0%
4p 82.6%
5p 78.1%
6p 81.7%
7p 72.3%
8p 77.8%
9p 82.3%
10p Insufficient sample
Share of scheduled flights on time
By scheduled local departure hour at SMF, 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 97.4% 154
Departing 6 am to 7 am 91.1% 539
Departing 7 am to 8 am 87.8% 335
Departing 8 am to 9 am 72.1% 251
Departing 9 am to 10 am 80.0% 50
Departing 10 am to 11 am 86.6% 194
Departing 11 am to noon 85.5% 454
Departing noon to 1 pm 85.8% 260
Departing 1 pm to 2 pm 88.6% 332
Departing 2 pm to 3 pm 76.0% 204
Departing 3 pm to 4 pm 70.0% 50
Departing 4 pm to 5 pm 82.6% 155
Departing 5 pm to 6 pm 78.1% 429
Departing 6 pm to 7 pm 81.7% 180
Departing 7 pm to 8 pm 72.3% 455
Departing 8 pm to 9 pm 77.8% 248
Departing 9 pm to 10 pm 82.3% 96
Departing 10 pm to 11 pm Insufficient sample 10
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 Sacramento, CA (SMF) to Seattle, WA (SEA), 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.

Independent reference site. No government or airline affiliation or endorsement.