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

Connect in the morning. The same 75-minute layover misses 8% of the time at 6 am and 37% of the time at 8 pm.

Nonstops (seasonal or thin)


United	SMF	IAD	5h 00m	96%	1.6%	365	Flying now

Best connections, any airlines

Most reliable Quickest (80%+ on time)

Ranked by chance you reach Dulles on time. Total trip = scheduled departure to arrival, layover included (Dulles is 3 h ahead of Sacramento). Layovers up to 4 hours. Pick a connection for the details.


Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 22:10 → MCO 06:15WN 3799	2h 40m Orlando	MCO 08:55 → IAD 11:14 +1UA 276	10h 04m	100%	95%
United Details →	SMF 18:47 → LAX 20:39UA 5628 · flown by SkyWest	51m Los Angeles	LAX 21:30 → IAD 05:36 +1UA 2632	7h 49m	99%	92%
Delta + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 11:26 → LAX 13:03DL 3755 · flown by SkyWest	3h 46m Los Angeles	LAX 16:49 → IAD 00:55 +1UA 1573	10h 29m	100%	92%
Delta + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 07:52 → SEA 10:05DL 4075 · flown by SkyWest	2h 55m Seattle	SEA 13:00 → IAD 21:06UA 2131	10h 14m	98%	91%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 17:40 → DEN 21:00WN 670	2h 59m Denver	DEN 23:59 → IAD 05:27 +1UA 1924	8h 47m	96%	90%
American + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 23:10 → ORD 05:36AA 3060	3h 04m Chicago	ORD 08:40 → IAD 11:52 +1UA 2277	9h 42m	98%	88%
Delta + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 06:00 → LAX 07:40DL 3969 · flown by SkyWest	2h 59m Los Angeles	LAX 10:39 → IAD 18:48UA 2667	9h 48m	98%	88%
Southwest + Unitedtwo ticketsDetails →	SMF 16:40 → SAN 18:10WN 4292	3h 49m San Diego	SAN 21:59 → IAD 05:59 +1UA 2129	10h 19m	100%	88%
Tight connection: often missed
Alaska Details →	SMF 12:57 → SEA 14:56AS 1476	1h 05m Seattle	SEA 16:01 → IAD 23:59AS 406	8h 02m	68%	54%
United Details →	SMF 14:17 → ORD 20:33UA 2766	1h 07m Chicago	ORD 21:40 → IAD 00:45 +1UA 2766	7h 28m	71%	49%
United Details →	SMF 19:03 → SFO 20:10UA 5961 · flown by SkyWest	1h 20m San Francisco	SFO 21:30 → IAD 05:53 +1UA 357	7h 50m	63%	45%

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

SEA · 57m · leaves 06:13 2%

IAH · 1h 12m · leaves 05:15 3%

SFO · 1h 16m · leaves 06:00 6%

Afternoon and evening

IAH · 1h 10m · leaves 13:15 8%

SLC · 1h 18m · leaves 13:30 9%

SFO · 1h 20m · leaves 19:03 37%

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.

The table above includes two-ticket connections (marked “two tickets”), held to the 90-minute minimum. One ticket only →

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