ON TIMEBOARD

SLC → OAK on time

Salt Lake City (Salt Lake City, UT) to Oakland (Oakland, CA). Every scheduled flight, September 2025 to August 2026.

On time
90%
arrived < 15 min late
Cancelled
0.2%
1,621 flights
Typical arrival
−8 min
median vs schedule
When late
+55 min
average delay
Flights / day
4
2 airlines

90% of flights from Salt Lake City to Oakland arrived on time over the past 12 months. That is better than the typical U.S. route. The 10 p.m. departures ran on time 92% of the time; the 3 p.m. ones 91%. Most reliable airline: Delta Air Lines (92%). 3% 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 SLC → OAK: when a flight was late, it was under 45 minutes late 62% of the time. About 1 in 34 flights landed an hour or more late, and 1 in 270 three hours or more; 0.2% were cancelled outright.

Share of all 1,621 scheduled flights, past 12 months, by arrival time against schedule.

By airline

AirlineFlightsOn timeCancelledTypical arrival1h+ lateAvg when lateOperated by
Delta Air Lines1,07492%0.2%−8 min2.5%+54 minSkyWest
Southwest Airlines54787%0.2%−7 min3.7%+57 minSouthwest 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 SLC). Delays build through the day as late planes knock on, so early flights usually do best.

40%70%100%5 a.m. departures: too few flights (29 flights)5a6 a.m. departures: too few flights (61 flights)6a7 a.m. departures: too few flights (19 flights)7a8 a.m. departures: too few flights8a9 a.m. departures: too few flights9a10 a.m. departures: 91% on time (507 flights)9110a11 a.m. departures: too few flights (74 flights)11anoon departures: too few flights (1 flights)12p1 p.m. departures: too few flights (53 flights)1p2 p.m. departures: too few flights2p3 p.m. departures: 91% on time (372 flights)913p4 p.m. departures: too few flights4p5 p.m. departures: too few flights (16 flights)5p6 p.m. departures: too few flights (35 flights)6p7 p.m. departures: too few flights (49 flights)7p8 p.m. departures: too few flights (49 flights)8p9 p.m. departures: too few flights (61 flights)9p10 p.m. departures: 92% on time (295 flights)9210p
SLC → OAK, 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 airline and hour

DepartsDelta Air LinesSouthwest Airlines
10 a.m.92%89%
3 p.m.90%—
10 p.m.93%—

Last flight of the day

On SLC → OAK, each airline's last flight of the day was cancelled 0.0% of the time, against 0.3% for its earlier flights, so here the last flight is actually the safer one. It arrived 3+ hours late 0.2% of the time (earlier flights: 0.6%). It matters more than the numbers suggest. Miss an earlier flight and there's another one that evening; miss the last one and you're usually waiting until morning.

AirlineLast departureLast: cancelledLast: 3h+ lateEarlier: cancelledNext morning
Delta Air Lines10:50 p.m.0.0%0.3%0.3%first flight 10:45 a.m.
Southwest Airlines1:00 p.m.0.0%0.0%0.5%first flight 11:70 a.m.

Last flight = the airline's last scheduled departure on this route that day, on days it flies the route at least twice; past 12 months. Times are typical scheduled times over the latest three months.

By month

Each calendar month pooled over 2023–2026. Best: September (93%). Worst: February (84%).

40%70%100%Jan: 86% on time (466 flights)86JanFeb: 84% on time (448 flights)84FebMar: 86% on time (478 flights)86MarApr: 89% on time (463 flights)89AprMay: 89% on time (475 flights)89MayJun: 88% on time (433 flights)88JunJul: 87% on time (447 flights)87JulAug: 88% on time (453 flights)88AugSep: 93% on time (488 flights)93SepOct: 91% on time (496 flights)91OctNov: 91% on time (443 flights)91NovDec: 89% on time (461 flights)89Dec

By day of week

DayFlightsOn timeCancelled
Monday24689%0.8%
Tuesday22796%0.0%
Wednesday22490%0.0%
Thursday24089%0.0%
Friday24289%0.0%
Saturday20091%0.5%
Sunday24286%0.0%

Why flights were late

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

Airline (crew, maintenance, ops) 58%Late inbound plane 24%Severe weather 12%Air traffic & airport (NAS) 6%

Cancellations: air traffic/airport 2 · weather 1

Month by month

60%80%100%Sep 2023Jan 2024Jan 2025Jan 2026Sep 2023: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2023: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2023: 94% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2023: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2024: 78% on time, 0.6% cancelledFeb 2024: 84% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2024: 86% on time, 0.6% cancelledApr 2024: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2024: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2024: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2024: 83% on time, 1.1% cancelledAug 2024: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2024: 92% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2024: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2024: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledDec 2024: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2025: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledFeb 2025: 83% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2025: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledApr 2025: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2025: 87% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2025: 85% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledSep 2025: 97% on time, 0.0% cancelledOct 2025: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledNov 2025: 92% on time, 1.7% cancelledDec 2025: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledJan 2026: 91% on time, 0.0% cancelledFeb 2026: 86% on time, 0.0% cancelledMar 2026: 86% on time, 0.7% cancelledApr 2026: 88% on time, 0.0% cancelledMay 2026: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelledJun 2026: 93% on time, 0.0% cancelledJul 2026: 90% on time, 0.0% cancelledAug 2026: 89% on time, 0.0% cancelled
Share of flights on time, by month (hover a point for cancellations)
SLC → OAK, monthly on-time and cancellation rate.

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
DL 413410:50 a.m.36592%0.5%−6 minSkyWest
DL 39033:10 p.m.34490%0.0%−9 minSkyWest
DL 379710:50 p.m.34993%0.0%−12 minSkyWest

Worst days in the past year

DateFlightsOn timeCancelled
Dec 25, 202530%0
Feb 18, 2026520%0
Jan 3, 2026333%0
Feb 17, 2026650%0
Jun 26, 2026450%0

Nearby airport alternatives

Other ways to make the same trip, using airports within 60 miles of Salt Lake City or Oakland. None has been clearly more reliable than SLC → OAK.

RouteFlightsOn timeCancelled
SLC → OAK (this route)1,62190%0.2%
SLC → SJC Salt Lake City to San Jose1,79686%0.4%
SLC → SFO Salt Lake City to San Francisco3,45363%1.0%

Questions

How often are flights from SLC to OAK on time?

90% of 1,621 scheduled flights from Salt Lake City, UT to Oakland, CA arrived within 15 minutes of schedule between September 2025 and August 2026. 0.2% were cancelled.

What is the best time of day to fly SLC to OAK?

Flights scheduled to leave at 10 p.m. were the most reliable (92% on time). The 3 p.m. departures were the least (91%).

Which airline is most on time from SLC to OAK?

Delta Air Lines: 92% of its 1,074 flights on the route arrived on time. Southwest Airlines: 87%.

What month has the most delays from SLC to OAK?

February (84% on time). The best month is September (93%), over 2023–2026.

Is the last flight of the day from SLC to OAK more likely to be cancelled?

No, the opposite. Each airline's last SLC–OAK flight of the day was cancelled 0.0% of the time over the past year, against 0.3% for its earlier flights. If the last flight is cancelled, the next one is usually the following morning.

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.