Sun, Oct 4 has passed, so this is the 12-month record.

Itineraries flown on 20+ days in the Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026 schedule · each leg’s record Aug 2025 – Jul 2026

The nonstop is quickest: Southwest SMF → MCI (3h 10m), on time 85% of the time. Southwest via Las Vegas (5h 50m) is more reliable, 98%, but takes 2h 40m longer.

Nonstops (seasonal or thin)


Southwest	SMF	MCI	3h 10m	85%	0.0%	207	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Kansas City on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Kansas City is 2 h ahead of Sacramento). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest Details →	SMF 06:15 → LAS 07:40WN 2178	2h 25m Las Vegas	LAS 10:05 → MCI 14:55WN 786	6h 40m	100%	100%
Southwest Details →	SMF 23:50 → MDW 05:45WN 3802	2h 15m Chicago	MDW 08:00 → MCI 09:30 +1WN 2808	7h 40m	100%	100%
Delta Details →	SMF 22:00 → ATL 05:32DL 878	2h 48m Atlanta	ATL 08:20 → MCI 09:31 +1DL 2471	9h 31m	100%	91%
Delta Details →	SMF 06:00 → LAX 07:40DL 3969 · flown by SkyWest	1h 55m Los Angeles	LAX 09:35 → MCI 14:50DL 1517	6h 50m	96%	89%
Southwest Details →	SMF 05:55 → DEN 09:15WN 3773	3h 15m Denver	DEN 12:30 → MCI 15:05WN 351	7h 10m	100%	88%
United Details →	SMF 05:00 → DEN 08:22UA 1889	1h 28m Denver	DEN 09:50 → MCI 12:38UA 2159	5h 38m	99%	87%
Delta Details →	SMF 05:30 → SLC 08:11DL 1526	2h 23m Salt Lake City	SLC 10:34 → MCI 14:00DL 2882	6h 30m	99%	86%
United Details →	SMF 05:15 → IAH 11:01UA 2863	3h 34m Houston	IAH 14:35 → MCI 16:47UA 3987 · flown by Mesa	9h 32m	100%	86%
Tight connection: often missed
Southwest Details →	SMF 22:10 → MCO 06:15WN 3799	50m Orlando	MCO 07:05 → MCI 09:00 +1WN 4139	8h 50m	48%	45%
United Details →	SMF 14:17 → ORD 20:33UA 2766	52m Chicago	ORD 21:25 → MCI 23:17UA 4723 · flown by SkyWest	7h 00m	42%	23%
Southwest Details →	SMF 13:40 → DEN 17:00WN 4105	55m Denver	DEN 17:55 → MCI 20:45WN 4305	5h 05m	39%	17%

Same layover, different day-part

How often the first flight arrives too late to connect (45 min minimum), for one-ticket layovers of 45–80 minutes.

Morning

ORD · 1h 09m · leaves 23:10 4%

IAH · 1h 04m · leaves 05:15 5%

MDW · 55m · leaves 05:15 11%

Afternoon and evening

PHX · 1h 16m · leaves 16:13 18%

ORD · 1h 00m · leaves 15:05 33%

DEN · 55m · leaves 13:40 61%

Delays build through the day, so an afternoon first leg eats the layover. A short connection is fine early in the morning and a gamble later on.

Mixing airlines

One ticketMiss it and the airline rebooks you; bags go through. 45 min is enough.

Separate ticketsMiss it and you buy a new ticket. Re-check bags, clear security again: we require 90 min.


United UA 1889 SMF 05:00 → DEN Southwest WN 3114 DEN 10:00 → MCI Connection details →	1h 38m	5h 45m	95%	93%
Delta DL 3969 SMF 06:00 → LAX United UA 5426 LAX 10:10 → MCI Connection details →	2h 30m	7h 45m	96%	88%
Southwest WN 3827 SMF 08:05 → SLC Delta DL 2903 SLC 13:40 → MCI Connection details →	3h 00m	7h 01m	100%	85%

Rank all connections, any airlines →

Regional partners count as the airline that sells them: SkyWest flying Delta Connection is one Delta ticket.

How these are worked out. Makes the connection: share of the last year’s flights where the first flight arrived with at least 45 minutes to spare (90 on separate tickets). Arrives on time: first flight not cancelled × connection made × second flight not cancelled and arriving within 15 minutes. Not yet counted: the second flight also leaving late (which helps), gate-to-gate distance at the hub, and rebooking after a missed connection.

About this data: US DOT on-time records, Aug 2025 – Jul 2026, all US airlines; regional flights count under the airline that sells them. Schedules (which flights and connections exist, and their times) are as of Jun 6 – Jul 31, 2026; seasonal flights outside that window aren’t ranked. Rebuilt monthly. JSON