ON TIMEBOARD
SMF Sacramento / CLT Charlotte

SMF → CLT on time

Sacramento (Sacramento, CA) to Charlotte Douglas (Charlotte, NC). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
86%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
2.1%
372 flights
Typical arrival
−15 min
median vs schedule
When late
+80 min
average delay
Flights / day
1
1 airline

86% of flights from Sacramento to Charlotte arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is better than the typical U.S. route. 6% of flights arrived more than an hour late or not at all.

How late?

The on-time rate treats a flight 20 minutes late the same as one 5 hours late. Here's the split for SMF → CLT: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 56% of the time. About 1 in 29 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 124 three hours or more; 2.2% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 372 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
American Airlines37286%2.1%−15 min3.5%+80 minAmerican Airlines

Airline = the name on the ticket. Regional flights (e.g. "Delta Connection") count under the ticketing airline, and the operator is listed.

Best time of day to fly

On-time rate by scheduled departure hour (local time at SMF). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%noon departures: too few flights (33 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights1p2 p.m. departures: too few flights2p3 p.m. departures: too few flights3p4 p.m. departures: too few flights4p5 p.m. departures: too few flights5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights6p7 p.m. departures: too few flights7p8 p.m. departures: too few flights8p9 p.m. departures: too few flights9p10 p.m. departures: 85% on time (327 flights)8510p
SMF → CLT, share of flights arriving on time, by departure hour. Hours with under 100 flights are greyed out.
82%+ on time76–82%68–76%under 68%too few flights

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: December (89%). Worst: July (78%).

40%70%100%Jan: too few flights (91 flights)JanFeb: too few flights (81 flights)FebMar: too few flights (93 flights)MarApr: too few flights (90 flights)AprMay: too few flights (93 flights)MayJun: 85% on time (111 flights)85JunJul: 78% on time (120 flights)78JulAug: too few flights (96 flights)AugSep: 85% on time (120 flights)85SepOct: too few flights (94 flights)OctNov: too few flights (87 flights)NovDec: 89% on time (103 flights)89Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday54——
Tuesday54——
Wednesday53——
Thursday52——
Friday53——
Saturday53——
Sunday53——

Why flights were late

Share of delay minutes on flights 15+ minutes late, as reported to BTS by the airlines.

Late inbound plane 63%Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 30%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 4%Severe weather 2%Security 1%

Cancellations: weather 7 · airline 1

Month by month

Not enough months with data to draw a trend.

Flight numbers on this route

Regular flights with at least 120 scheduled trips in the past year. Sorted by departure time.

FlightDepartsFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrivalOperated by
AA 246410:03 p.m.27985%2.9%−13 minAmerican Airlines

Questions

How often are flights from SMF to CLT on time?

86% of 372 scheduled flights from Sacramento, CA to Charlotte, NC arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 2.1% were cancelled.

What month has the most delays from SMF to CLT?

July (78% on time). The best month is December (89%), over 2023–2026.

Related

Domestic flights by the airlines that report to the U.S. DOT, plus their regional partners. "On time" means arriving less than 15 minutes after schedule; cancelled and diverted flights count as not on time. Past performance is a guide, not a forecast. Method.