Flights Washington → Sacramento
IAD → SMF
How long is the flight from Washington to Sacramento?
The flight from Washington (IAD) to Sacramento (SMF) takes 5h 8m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
Route overview
The flight route from Washington to Sacramento operates with high punctuality, achieving an on-time performance rate of 91%. Over the course of a year, this route sees 89 flights using Airbus A320 aircraft, with each flight experiencing an average delay of 7.8 minutes. The destination airport serves over twelve million passengers annually.
Your rights on this US flight (DOT)
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under the US DOT rules, if your flight is cancelled or significantly changed and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Amenities for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
US flight refund rules & checker →General information, not legal advice.
The Washington (IAD) → Sacramento (SMF) route is operated by United Airlines. Across 199 flights monitored in recent months, 84% arrived on time (within 15 min of schedule), with an average delay of 9 minutes. The cancellation rate is 2.01%. FlightGuard's average computed risk is 15.8/100 (medium), updated in real time from weather, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel and flight history. At Sacramento the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes (main cause: atfm). Departing from Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 minutes.
Heading to Sacramento: what to expect in this direction
Flying from Washington (IAD) to Sacramento (SMF) heads west for about 3,785 km, a flight time of roughly 5h 8m.
Departures from Washington on this leg cluster in the midday window: about 93% of IAD-SMF flights take off then.
Air-traffic congestion: departing Washington the average ATFM delay is 5.5 min (atfm); arriving into Sacramento it is 5.5 min (atfm).
Across 199 tracked IAD-SMF flights, 84% left on time with an average delay of 9 min and a 2.0% cancellation rate.
Route facts
Flights on this route
Check the risk of a specific flight.
Flexible on this trip? Compare flights
Airline punctuality on this route
| Airline | On-time | Average delay | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Airlines (UA) | 83% | 5 min | 1.3% |
Airlines operating IAD-SMF
Airports
Frequently asked questions about IAD-SMF
The flight from Washington (IAD) to Sacramento (SMF) takes 5h 8m on average. That is the median time recorded across 1 scheduled flight on this leg; the actual time varies by a few minutes with wind, routing and take-off queues.
On the Washington (IAD) -> Sacramento (SMF) route, on-time performance is 84% with an average delay of 9 minutes, based on 199 tracked flights.
The cancellation rate on Washington-Sacramento is 2.01% across 199 monitored flights.
The route is operated by 1 airline: United Airlines.
Enter your flight number on FlightGuard for a real-time analysis based on 9 factors: weather at Sacramento, ATC delays, strikes, NOTAMs, fuel, airline punctuality and recent trends.
US flights have no statutory cash compensation for delays. Under US DOT rules, if the airline cancels or significantly changes your flight and you decline rebooking, you're owed an automatic refund of the unused ticket. The tarmac-delay limit is 3 hours (domestic) / 4 hours (international). Meals or hotels for controllable delays depend on each airline's contract of carriage.
