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

No clear winner: Southwest’s DEN → LGB flights land within a few points of 3 in 4 on time whatever the hour.

Nonstops


Southwest	DEN	LGB	2h 30m	74%	0.6%	1,005	Flying now

Best connections, one ticket

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Long Beach on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Long Beach is 1 h behind Denver). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest Details →	DEN 09:00 → SMF 10:25WN 1739	2h 45m Sacramento	SMF 13:10 → LGB 14:40WN 2414	6h 40m	100%	96%
Southwest Details →	DEN 07:40 → LAS 08:35WN 1559	3h 00m Las Vegas	LAS 11:35 → LGB 12:45WN 2260	6h 05m	100%	94%
Southwest Details →	DEN 05:45 → LAS 06:40WN 3106	1h 15m Las Vegas	LAS 07:55 → LGB 09:05WN 276	4h 20m	100%	86%
Delta Details →	DEN 05:40 → SLC 07:13DL 2544	3h 52m Salt Lake City	SLC 11:05 → LGB 12:02DL 1116	7h 22m	97%	86%
Southwest Details →	DEN 06:15 → PHX 07:05WN 1675	1h 30m Phoenix	PHX 08:35 → LGB 09:55WN 165	4h 40m	96%	84%
Southwest Details →	DEN 08:00 → PHX 09:05WN 3336	2h 35m Phoenix	PHX 11:40 → LGB 12:55WN 2505	5h 55m	100%	84%
Southwest Details →	DEN 13:30 → SMF 14:58WN 1741	1h 17m Sacramento	SMF 16:15 → LGB 17:40WN 2485	5h 10m	90%	82%
Southwest Details →	DEN 07:45 → OAK 09:25WN 1240	1h 05m Oakland	OAK 10:30 → LGB 11:55WN 1328	5h 10m	93%	78%
Tight connection: often missed
Delta Details →	DEN 12:45 → SLC 14:18DL 1553	47m Salt Lake City	SLC 15:05 → LGB 16:10DL 3793 · flown by SkyWest	4h 25m	70%	65%
Southwest Details →	DEN 17:30 → LAS 18:30WN 1564	1h 30m Las Vegas	LAS 20:00 → LGB 21:10WN 2031	4h 40m	70%	47%
Southwest Details →	DEN 17:20 → PHX 18:15WN 1682	1h 00m Phoenix	PHX 19:15 → LGB 20:30WN 4352	4h 10m	21%	12%

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

OAK · 1h 05m · leaves 07:45 7%

Afternoon and evening

PHX · 1h 20m · leaves 14:20 9%

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 2149 DEN 08:00 → SMF Southwest WN 2414 SMF 13:10 → LGB Connection details →	3h 35m	7h 40m	99%	95%
Southwest WN 4027 DEN 10:05 → SLC Delta DL 3793 SLC 15:05 → LGB Connection details →	3h 20m	7h 05m	100%	94%
United UA 2316 DEN 08:05 → LAS Southwest WN 2260 LAS 11:35 → LGB Connection details →	2h 28m	5h 40m	98%	92%

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