Santa Ana, CA · Airport profile
SNA
John Wayne Airport
82.2% of departures from SNA arrived on time across 137,357 flights, July 2023 – July 2026. The weakest hour is 2 PM, at 75.5%. Late-arriving aircraft accounts for the most delay minutes.
SNA right now
Live conditions where a permitted source publishes them, and the historical record where none does.
Aviation weather is not currently a factor.
Minimal operational impact. Conditions are not a notable factor for operations right now.
UpdatedForecast issued 05:20Z.
UpdatedBelow 10,000 ft, so aircraft overflying at cruise are not counted. These are observations, not an operational status: a count is a floor, since receiver coverage varies and a movement between two samples can be missed.
UpdatedAircraft observations from ADSB.lol (opens in a new tab) (Katia Esposito and contributing feeders), under the ODbL 1.0 (opens in a new tab). Derived data.
FlyerIntel shows live values only where a permitted source provides them. Sections without data are left empty rather than estimated.
Airport reliability
Departures from SNA, July 2023 – July 2026.
Better than 77% of major US airports covered by FlyerIntel (64 compared)
Calculated from 137,357 flights. How this is calculated
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026
What stands out
How this airport compares to others like it, not just to itself.
Weather is still the leading cause at this airport, but a smaller share of it than 98% of 61 comparable airports; cancellations here spread across causes more evenly.
Weather accounts for 44.5% of coded cancellations at this airport, against 59.9% across every covered airport.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Ranked against every other airport with the same kind of figure and at least 61 in the comparison.
Why flights are cancelled at SNA
Every cancellation carries a reason code filed by the airline that operated the flight. Departures, July 2023 – July 2026.
Extreme weather accounts for 44.1% of cancelled departures from SNA — about 1 in every 221 scheduled departures. That is 15 points lower than the 59.5% recorded across every airport FlyerIntel covers.
Share of cancellations
Of 1,409 cancelled departures carrying a reason code.
What each reason means
Conditions the carrier judged severe enough to stop the flight: a blizzard, a hurricane, a line of thunderstorms.
621 cancellations, 44.1% of the total.
Crew, maintenance, aircraft cleaning, baggage or fueling: what BTS counts as within the carrier’s own control.
610 cancellations, 43.3% of the total.
Airport capacity, air traffic control flow programs, heavy traffic and ordinary bad weather. A system decision, not the airline’s.
177 cancellations, 12.6% of the total.
A terminal evacuation, a security breach, screening equipment failure, or screening queues over 29 minutes.
1 cancellation, 0.1% of the total.
1,409 of 137,357 scheduled departures from SNA were cancelled. Ordinary bad weather is filed under air traffic, so weather’s full share is larger than its bar.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026 · Reason codes are each airline’s own filing, not an independent finding of fault. Shown for airports with at least 500 coded cancellations; 1,409 were recorded at SNA.
Why flights run late at SNA
Where US DOT attributed the delay minutes on departures from SNA.
the inbound aircraft was late, so this flight started late
crew, maintenance, boarding and fueling, all within the carrier’s control
airspace and airport capacity, including weather-driven flow control
weather severe enough to stop this flight specifically
screening or terminal security incidents
Share of the delay minutes US DOT attributed to each cause for departures from SNA. Only delays of 15 minutes or more are attributed.
Of the 23,828 departures from SNA that left 15 or more minutes late and have a known inbound aircraft, 63% followed a flight that landed 15 or more minutes late. The other 37% left late even though the aircraft had come in on time or early. Across the 64 covered airports that share runs from 47% to 73%, with a median of 62%; SNA’s is the 26th highest.
The late flight is the one the same aircraft flew into SNA just before, found from the tail number in the DOT file. Airlines and hours differ from one airport to the next, so this describes the departures from SNA and does not rate the airport.
An airport is only partly the author of its own delays. Late-arriving aircraft describes the national schedule arriving here more than anything about this airfield. Air traffic control covers airspace and airport capacity, which is where a congested airport shows up; only the airline category sits squarely inside the carriers’ own operation. How differently they run it is further down this page.
Source: US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics · Data covering July 2023 – July 2026
What weather costs at SNA
Departures from SNA by the weather at the airport in the hour they were scheduled to leave, July 2023 – July 2026.
5.8% of scheduled departures from SNA left in an hour of bad weather. 1.9% of them were cancelled, against 1.0% in normal conditions, and 83.6% of the ones that flew arrived on time, against 81.3%. Those hours held 11% of all cancelled departures. That is about 76 more cancellations than the normal-conditions rate would give.
Cancellations were highest in fog hours: 3.8% of 761 departures, 4.0 times the normal rate.
Airlines filed 44% of SNA’s coded cancellations under extreme weather. By the weather at the airport in the scheduled hour, 11% of cancelled departures were in bad-weather hours. A code is the airline’s stated reason and an hour’s weather is what the airport reported, so the two need not match.
By weather
Scheduled departures, July 2023 – July 2026| Weather at the airport | Departures | Cancelled | Left on time | Arrived on time | Avg. departure delay |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Normal conditionsVFR with no thunderstorm, snow or ice, fog, heavy rain or high wind | 106,04877.3% of all | 1.0% | 79.9% | 81.3% | 11.6 min |
| Any bad weatherIFR or LIFR, or a thunderstorm, snow or ice, fog, heavy rain or high wind | 7,9195.8% of all | 1.9%2.0 times normal | 84.2% | 83.6%2.3 points above normal | 10.0 min |
| MVFRceiling 1,000 to 3,000 feet or visibility 3 to 5 miles | 23,21116.9% of all | 1.0% | 85.5% | 86.0%4.7 points above normal | 7.2 min |
| IFRceiling 500 to 999 feet or visibility 1 to under 3 miles | 5,1653.8% of all | 1.7%1.8 times normal | 84.7% | 85.6%4.3 points above normal | 8.3 min |
| LIFRceiling under 500 feet or visibility under 1 mile | 2,2331.6% of all | 2.1%2.2 times normal | 83.5% | 80.5% | 14.3 min |
| Fogfog or freezing fog reported at the airport | 7610.6% of all | 3.8%4.0 times normal | 77.5% | 68.7%12.6 points below normal | 26.7 min |
| Heavy rainheavy rain reported at the airport | 4170.3% of all | 2.2%2.3 times normal | 74.3% | 76.5%4.8 points below normal | 17.5 min |
| High windwind of 25 knots or more, or gusts of 30 knots or more | 4990.4% of all | 3.0%3.1 times normal | 80.6% | 75.5%5.8 points below normal | 11.1 min |
| Low ceilinga broken or overcast layer under 1,000 feet | 6,3994.7% of all | 1.7%1.8 times normal | 85.6% | 84.8%3.5 points above normal | 9.3 min |
| Low visibilityvisibility under 3 miles | 3,4692.5% of all | 2.5%2.6 times normal | 79.0% | 78.3%3.0 points below normal | 17.2 min |
A departure is counted in every row its hour fits, so the rows overlap and do not add up. Left on time is a departure under 15 minutes late, and arrived on time an arrival under 15 minutes late; cancelled is the share of scheduled departures. Rows with fewer than 120 departures are not scored. Too few departures to score: thunderstorm (52).
This is the weather reported at SNA in the hour a flight was scheduled to leave. It leaves out the weather at the destination and on the way, weather that arrived after the scheduled time, and anything else that goes wrong in a bad hour. An hour takes the worst conditions any report in it gave. Weather was matched to 99.8% of the airport’s scheduled departures; the rest left in hours with no report, or at a scheduled time the flight records cannot place exactly. Bad-weather hours are compared with normal hours at the same airport, not with what the same flights would have done in a clear sky: they also fall more often in some seasons and at some times of day.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS flight records and Iowa Environmental Mesonet weather reports · July 2023 – July 2026 · Where the weather comes from, and its limits. All covered airports side by side: What Weather Costs Each Airport.
Which airlines hold up in bad weather at SNA
Cancellations by airline in hours of bad weather at SNA, against the other carriers in the same months, July 2023 – July 2026.
6% of the weather-matched departures from SNA left in an hour of bad weather at the airport. 1.9% of them were cancelled. That is 2.0 times the 1.0% in normal hours. No one carrier holds most of them; 5 airlines have enough to compare.
Compared with the other carriers at SNA in the same months, Delta Air Lines (0.6% cancelled against 2.3% for the others; level with them in normal hours, so a bad-weather difference) cancelled the fewest in bad weather and SkyWest Airlines (4.1% cancelled against 1.9% for the others; level with them in normal hours, so a bad-weather difference) the most. 1 more airline is also clearly apart from the others.
Airlines in bad weather at SNA
Scheduled departures, July 2023 – July 2026| Airline | Bad-weather departures | Cancelled | Other carriers | Normal hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delta Air Lines | 93512% of bad-weather | 0.6%below the others | 2.3% | 0.8%others 1.0% |
| American Airlines | 1,26516% of bad-weather | 0.9%below the others | 2.4% | 1.5%others 0.9% |
| United Airlines | 1,26016% of bad-weather | 1.4% | 2.2% | 0.7%others 1.0% |
| Alaska Airlines | 79710% of bad-weather | 2.5% | 1.9% | 1.1%others 0.9% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 6138% of bad-weather | 4.1%above the others | 1.9% | 0.9%others 1.0% |
Best first. The other carriers’ column applies their rate in each month to the airline’s own departures, so a stormy month is not held against it; the normal-hours column gives the same pair outside bad weather.
The 5 listed airlines flew 61% of the bad-weather departures at SNA; a carrier under 500 is not listed. The comparison does not hold the hour of the day, the destination or the aircraft fixed, and a gap counts as clear only at 2 standard errors and 0.3 points. SkyWest Airlines flies for Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines and Alaska Airlines and is counted as a carrier of its own here, though it shares the airport’s gates, its de-icing and often its decisions to cancel.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS flight records and Iowa Environmental Mesonet weather reports · July 2023 – July 2026 · Where the weather comes from, and its limits. All covered airports side by side: What Weather Costs Each Airport.
Turning aircraft around at SNA
Time on the ground between one flight and the next of the same aircraft at SNA, and what a late arrival does to the next departure, July 2023 – July 2026.
The median turn at SNA is scheduled for 50 minutes on the ground and takes 52 minutes, against 56 minutes and 63 minutes across all airports. Aircraft are given less time on the ground here than at the typical airport. The typical turn runs 2 minutes over its schedule, closer to it than the 7 minutes across all airports.
When the aircraft landed 15 or more minutes late (17,898 turns here, 52 minutes late on average), 64% of the turns were finished in no more than the scheduled ground time, against 68% across all airports. 82% of those flights left 15 or more minutes late, against 72%. After an aircraft that landed on time, 9% did (all airports 11%).
Given the turn lengths scheduled here, the network’s rates would give 58% finished in the schedule and 83% leaving late. SNA finishes more late turns in the schedule than the network would, but lateness is passed on about as often. 41% of its late-inbound turns had a scheduled turn of 45 to 59 minutes, against 31% across all airports.
Turns at SNA against all airports
102,860 turns, July 2023 – July 2026| Measure | SNA | All airports | All airports, same turn lengths |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median scheduled turn | 50 min | 56 min | — |
| Median actual turn | 52 min | 63 min | — |
| Turns that began with an aircraft 15+ minutes late | 17% | 19% | — |
| Late turns finished within the schedule | 64% | 68% | 58% |
| Late inbound that left 15+ minutes late | 82% | 72% | 83% |
| On-time inbound that left 15+ minutes late | 9% | 11% | — |
The last column is the network’s rate at the turn lengths scheduled at SNA, band by band from under 30 minutes to 3 to 6 hours. A turn finishes within the schedule when the aircraft spent no more time on the ground than the schedule gave it.
A turn pairs an aircraft’s landing at SNA with its next departure from it by tail number; the aircraft is never named. These 102,860 turns are 75% of the flights that left SNA in the period; the rest are an aircraft’s first flight after a long stay, flights without a usable inbound, and cancelled flights. Ground time runs from the gate. Turns under 30 minutes are kept, but most leave late even after an on-time landing. Airlines set their own turn schedules, so this describes the airlines that fly at SNA and does not rate the airport.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS flight records · July 2023 – July 2026 · Airports side by side: Where a Late Aircraft Gets Its Time Back.
What sets SNA apart
Where SNA’s hours, months, airlines and taxi time differ most from the other airports, July 2023 – July 2026.
Flights scheduled to leave SNA at 9 PM arrive on time 90.6% of the time, 19.5 points better than the 71.1% for that hour at the other airports.
July treats SNA better than it treats the rest of the country: 77.1% on time against 70.1% elsewhere, 7 points ahead.
Spirit Airlines does better out of SNA than anywhere else it flies: 86.1% on time here, 75.4% on its other departures, 10.7 points apart.
SkyWest Airlines’ departures from SNA arrive on time 74.4% of the time, 6 points worse than the 80.4% the same airline manages at its other airports.
Taxi-out at SNA averages 15.7 minutes, 3.0 minutes less than the 18.7 minutes elsewhere.
SNA against the other airports
July 2023 – July 2026| Measure | SNA | Elsewhere | Gap | Flights behind it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hour: 9 PM departures | 90.6% | 71.1% | +19.5 pts | 3,108 here, 681,203 elsewhere |
| Month: July | 77.1% | 70.1% | +7.0 pts | 15,249 here, 1,971,234 elsewhere |
| Airline: Spirit Airlines | 86.1% | 75.4% | +10.7 pts | 3,370 here, 617,934 elsewhere |
| Airline: SkyWest Airlines | 74.4% | 80.4% | −6.0 pts | 14,460 here, 2,379,050 elsewhere |
| Taxi-out: Departures | 15.7 min | 18.7 min | −3.0 min | 135,993 here, 17,494,116 elsewhere |
"Elsewhere" is every other covered airport together, taken from the same aggregates as this page with SNA’s own flights removed (for airlines, that airline’s flights from all its other airports). Hours, months and airlines appear only where both sides have at least 120 completed flights (airlines 500) and the gap is at least 2 points and 2 standard errors; only the largest gap in each direction is shown. The taxi figure is weighted by departures and has no error estimate, so it appears from 2 minutes.
Best time to fly from SNA
On-time arrival rate by scheduled local departure time: each weekday and hour, and averaged over the week.
Flights departing 5–9 AM arrived on time 91.1% of the time, against 76.8% for 6–9 PM departures — a gap of 14.3 percentage points.
By day and hour
On-time arrival rate for each weekday and scheduled departure hour, in local time.
Thursday 6–7 AM was the most reliable slot at SNA (93.6% on time, 1,699 flights) and Sunday 6–7 PM the least (68.8%, 1,340 flights).
Hour of departure matters more than day of the week: hourly averages sit a typical 6.1 points from the airport-wide rate, weekday averages 3.4 points.
| Hour | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
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| 9 PM–10 PM |
On-time rate, % · stronger color, fewer on time
- 68–71
- 72–75
- 76–79
- 80–83
- 84–87
- 88–91
- 92–95
- Fewer than 120 flights, not scored
- Most reliable slot
- Least reliable slot
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · On time is arrival within 15 minutes of schedule. Cells round to whole percentages; the table shows one decimal.
Best and worst slots are named only among slots with 500+ flights, and only when the gap is larger than sampling error.
View as tableHide table
| Hour | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 AM–7 AM | 92.8% on time1,701 flights | 91.1% on time1,685 flights | 93.1% on time1,676 flights | 93.6% on time1,699 flights | 91.9% on time1,702 flights | 93.0% on time1,688 flights | 0 flights, too few to score |
| 7 AM–8 AM | 90.7% on time1,772 flights | 91.6% on time1,692 flights | 92.6% on time1,691 flights | 91.8% on time1,778 flights | 91.7% on time1,772 flights | 92.0% on time1,695 flights | 83.1% on time1,851 flights |
| 8 AM–9 AM | 90.8% on time1,325 flights | 90.8% on time1,132 flights | 91.8% on time1,146 flights | 92.7% on time1,310 flights | 89.9% on time1,336 flights | 89.2% on time1,011 flights | 87.7% on time1,858 flights |
| 9 AM–10 AM | 84.9% on time1,232 flights | 88.5% on time1,146 flights | 90.2% on time1,157 flights | 85.3% on time1,280 flights | 85.4% on time1,210 flights | 87.2% on time969 flights | 86.8% on time1,616 flights |
| 10 AM–11 AM | 84.9% on time1,551 flights | 87.4% on time1,202 flights | 87.8% on time1,254 flights | 85.8% on time1,556 flights | 86.3% on time1,572 flights | 87.8% on time1,314 flights | 82.8% on time1,439 flights |
| 11 AM–12 PM | 79.2% on time1,630 flights | 85.2% on time1,554 flights | 85.4% on time1,569 flights | 82.3% on time1,639 flights | 78.0% on time1,632 flights | 82.0% on time1,235 flights | 78.7% on time1,697 flights |
| 12 PM–1 PM | 78.2% on time1,550 flights | 83.6% on time1,338 flights | 82.0% on time1,430 flights | 75.5% on time1,560 flights | 77.3% on time1,569 flights | 81.1% on time1,175 flights | 71.5% on time1,509 flights |
| 1 PM–2 PM | 75.2% on time1,671 flights | 85.1% on time1,324 flights | 82.4% on time1,339 flights | 74.1% on time1,613 flights | 71.9% on time1,667 flights | 82.3% on time1,197 flights | 71.9% on time1,648 flights |
| 2 PM–3 PM | 78.0% on time1,238 flights | 80.0% on time1,079 flights | 78.0% on time1,115 flights | 71.4% on time1,270 flights | 70.9% on time1,244 flights | 81.8% on time994 flights | 70.8% on time1,239 flights |
| 3 PM–4 PM | 75.5% on time1,205 flights | 84.7% on time1,014 flights | 80.5% on time1,018 flights | 72.5% on time1,187 flights | 71.0% on time1,175 flights | 84.2% on time910 flights | 73.0% on time1,162 flights |
| 4 PM–5 PM | 77.7% on time1,283 flights | 82.7% on time1,080 flights | 78.0% on time1,070 flights | 72.2% on time1,242 flights | 69.8% on time1,290 flights | 83.0% on time990 flights | 71.5% on time1,262 flights |
| 5 PM–6 PM | 81.8% on time1,175 flights | 86.7% on time967 flights | 83.7% on time971 flights | 74.7% on time1,169 flights | 73.5% on time1,175 flights | 86.7% on time834 flights | 71.7% on time1,234 flights |
| 6 PM–7 PM | 78.6% on time1,370 flights | 84.1% on time939 flights | 82.5% on time985 flights | 70.6% on time1,424 flights | 71.9% on time1,392 flights | 83.7% on time725 flights | 68.8% on time1,340 flights |
| 7 PM–8 PM | 75.8% on time1,237 flights | 83.7% on time1,104 flights | 79.9% on time1,137 flights | 71.1% on time1,231 flights | 72.2% on time1,217 flights | 84.2% on time679 flights | 71.4% on time1,278 flights |
| 8 PM–9 PM | 81.2% on time915 flights | 85.7% on time452 flights | 85.3% on time458 flights | 75.4% on time918 flights | 79.3% on time946 flights | 83.7% on time348 flights | 72.0% on time885 flights |
| 9 PM–10 PM | 90.4% on time536 flights | 91.9% on time287 flights | 93.6% on time283 flights | 91.5% on time516 flights | 90.3% on time548 flights | 95.4% on time315 flights | 86.4% on time736 flights |
By departure window
All days combinedBy departure hour
All days combined- 12 AM to 5 AM: too few flights to score
- 6 AM: 92.6% on time from 10,151 flights
- 7 AM: 90.4% on time from 12,251 flights
- 8 AM: 90.2% on time from 9,118 flights
- 9 AM: 86.8% on time from 8,610 flights
- 10 AM: 86.0% on time from 9,888 flights
- 11 AM: 81.5% on time from 10,956 flights
- 12 PM: 78.3% on time from 10,131 flights
- 1 PM: 77.0% on time from 10,459 flights
- 2 PM: 75.5% on time from 8,179 flights
- 3 PM: 76.9% on time from 7,671 flights
- 4 PM: 76.0% on time from 8,217 flights
- 5 PM: 79.2% on time from 7,525 flights
- 6 PM: 76.0% on time from 8,175 flights
- 7 PM: 76.2% on time from 7,883 flights
- 8 PM: 79.1% on time from 4,922 flights
- 9 PM: 90.6% on time from 3,221 flights
- 10 PM to 11 PM: too few flights to score
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Buckets with fewer than 120 flights are not scored.
What parking will cost
Estimated from SNA's own published rates.
Estimated cost
Choose a facility and both dates to see an estimate.
Rates as published by the airport, last read 2026-08-31. Confirm before you travel.
Source: John Wayne Airport · An estimate from published standard rates. Airports vary surcharges, oversize vehicle fees and event pricing, so confirm the price with the airport before you travel.
International arrivals
How long passport control normally takes here, hour by hour and hall by hall. This is the arrivals queue, not departure security — and it is history, not a live wait.
At Terminal C, SNA’s busiest hall, both passport queues run much the same: a typical 5 min on a US passport and 5 min on any other, rising to 10 min on a busy day. Where the two halls agree like this, CBP’s combined figure of 5 min is a fair summary of both — which is not true everywhere, and is why they are shown apart.
Terminal by terminal, across the day
| Terminal | US passports | US busy day | Other passports | Other busy day | Global Entry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal C | 5 min | 7 min | 5 min | 10 min | 19.4% of arrivals |
Source: US Customs and Border Protection · 2024-08-28 to 2026-10-16 · These are CBP passport control waits for arriving international passengers — a different queue from TSA departure screening. CBP publishes them about two days in arrears, so every figure here describes what has been typical over 2024-08-28 to 2026-10-16, and none of it is a live queue or a forecast for your flight. US and non-US passengers are reported separately by CBP and are kept separate here, because they are separate halls. FlyerIntel publishes a terminal or an hour only where CBP filed at least 120 hourly records for it, and an hour-by-hour breakdown only where at least 6 hours clear that floor.
What to expect at SNA
How busy the airport is through the day, from scheduled departure volume.
Scheduled departures by hour
- 12 AM: no departures
- 1 AM: no departures
- 2 AM: no departures
- 3 AM: no departures
- 4 AM: no departures
- 5 AM: no departures
- 6 AM: about 9 departures a day
- 7 AM: about 11 departures a day
- 8 AM: about 8 departures a day
- 9 AM: about 8 departures a day
- 10 AM: about 9 departures a day
- 11 AM: about 10 departures a day
- 12 PM: about 9 departures a day
- 1 PM: about 9 departures a day
- 2 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 3 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 4 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 5 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 6 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 7 PM: about 7 departures a day
- 8 PM: about 4 departures a day
- 9 PM: about 3 departures a day
- 10 PM: no departures
- 11 PM: no departures
The busiest hour is 7 AM, with about 11 departures a day, against roughly 3 at 9 PM. That peak is also more punctual than a typical hour here: early banks fly aircraft that spent the night on the ground rather than ones inheriting the day’s delays.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Taxi-out runs from gate to wheels-up, averaged over departures and weighted by hour. Taxi-in runs from touchdown to gate.
Weekly and seasonal patterns
By day of week
Tuesday is historically the most reliable day and Sunday the least, a gap of 9.5 percentage points.
By month
- Jan: 84.4% on time
- Feb: 85.0% on time
- Mar: 82.3% on time
- Apr: 82.4% on time
- May: 80.8% on time
- Jun: 77.9% on time
- Jul: 77.1% on time
- Aug: 82.0% on time
- Sep: 85.5% on time
- Oct: 84.3% on time
- Nov: 84.4% on time
- Dec: 82.9% on time
July is historically the weakest month and September the strongest, a spread of 8.4 percentage points.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026
Airlines at SNA
Departure performance by operating carrier. Regional flights are reported by the carrier that operated them, not by the mainline brand.
| Carrier | Departures | On time | Cancelled | Median delay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southwest Airlines WN | 45,054 | 83.7% | 0.81% | -7 min |
| American Airlines AA | 20,463 | 81.3% | 1.45% | -8 min |
| United Airlines UA | 18,985 | 83.2% | 0.76% | -9 min |
| SkyWest Airlines OO | 14,709 | 74.4% | 1.18% | -5 min |
| Delta Air Lines DL | 14,472 | 83.9% | 0.73% | -10 min |
| Alaska Airlines AS | 13,155 | 87.5% | 1.22% | -8 min |
| Allegiant Air G4 | 3,553 | 70.2% | 1.35% | -1 min |
| Frontier Airlines F9 | 3,552 | 76.4% | 2.03% | -7 min |
| Spirit Airlines NK | 3,414 | 86.1% | 1.26% | -6 min |
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Carriers with fewer than 500 departures are not listed.
Routes from SNA
Ranked by FlyerIntel Route Reliability Score.
Busiest routes
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026 · Only routes with at least 10,000 flights are ranked.
Reliability over time
On-time arrival rate for departures, by month.
- July 2023: 77.6% on time from 3,900 flights
- August 2023: 81.6% on time from 3,913 flights
- September 2023: 85.8% on time from 3,765 flights
- October 2023: 84.1% on time from 3,847 flights
- November 2023: 85.9% on time from 3,675 flights
- December 2023: 87.9% on time from 3,631 flights
- January 2024: 81.9% on time from 3,642 flights
- February 2024: 83.5% on time from 3,408 flights
- March 2024: 79.0% on time from 3,790 flights
- April 2024: 81.7% on time from 3,598 flights
- May 2024: 81.0% on time from 3,707 flights
- June 2024: 80.9% on time from 3,551 flights
- July 2024: 79.8% on time from 3,697 flights
- August 2024: 83.8% on time from 3,707 flights
- September 2024: 86.2% on time from 3,516 flights
- October 2024: 85.8% on time from 3,674 flights
- November 2024: 86.7% on time from 3,580 flights
- December 2024: 81.5% on time from 3,649 flights
- January 2025: 84.8% on time from 3,478 flights
- February 2025: 85.8% on time from 3,186 flights
- March 2025: 84.0% on time from 3,698 flights
- April 2025: 82.9% on time from 3,632 flights
- May 2025: 80.2% on time from 3,935 flights
- June 2025: 77.9% on time from 3,945 flights
- July 2025: 75.7% on time from 4,002 flights
- August 2025: 80.6% on time from 3,918 flights
- September 2025: 84.7% on time from 3,751 flights
- October 2025: 82.9% on time from 3,871 flights
- November 2025: 80.8% on time from 3,756 flights
- December 2025: 79.4% on time from 3,825 flights
- January 2026: 86.5% on time from 3,611 flights
- February 2026: 85.7% on time from 3,343 flights
- March 2026: 83.8% on time from 3,821 flights
- April 2026: 82.5% on time from 3,686 flights
- May 2026: 81.3% on time from 3,835 flights
- June 2026: 75.1% on time from 3,822 flights
- July 2026: 75.5% on time from 3,992 flights
Over the most recent 12 months (2025-08 to 2026-07), departures from SNA arrived on time 81.5% of the time, against 82.8% in the 12 months before — broadly unchanged.
Source: FlyerIntel analysis of US DOT BTS data · July 2023 – July 2026
Data and sources
Historical statistics
Every historical figure on this page is calculated by FlyerIntel from US DOT Bureau of Transportation Statistics on-time performance records covering July 2023 – July 2026, comprising 137,357 departures from SNA. A flight counts as delayed when it arrives 15 or more minutes after schedule.
Full methodology · All data sources
Related research: The Day After the Holiday · The Least Reliable Hour of the Week · The Best Major Airports for a Tight Connection · Which Months Cancel the Most Flights
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<a href="https://flyerintel.com/airports/sna/"><img src="https://flyerintel.com/badge/airport/sna/" alt="John Wayne Airport on-time performance, from FlyerIntel"></a>Live conditions
Aviation weather comes from the NOAA Aviation Weather Center. Operational events come from the FAA where available. FlyerIntel shows the age of every live value and does not display data it cannot currently retrieve.
Latest observation for SNA: METAR KSNA 180753Z AUTO 02003KT 10SM CLR 23/09 A2998 RMK AO2 SLP150 T02330089 403220233 $ (issued ).