John Wayne (SNA) Flight Delays: Rate, Best Hours and Airlines
John Wayne (SNA) is covered here with a statistics page (it is not one of the 22 full guide airports): 18.2% of flights departing SNA arrived 15 or more minutes late across 131,590 flights, January 2023 to December 2025. Southwest Airlines operated 33.4% of those departures. The worst scheduled departure hours are 2 PM (24.7%) and 4 PM (24.3%); 6 AM is the best at 7.1%. 0.99% of scheduled SNA departures were cancelled in 2024 to 2025.
Delay window: January 2023 to December 2025. Cancellation window: 2024 to 2025. Last updated: 2026-10-01. Delayed means a flight arrived 15 or more minutes after its scheduled arrival, the BTS and DOT on-time standard. Cancelled and diverted flights are excluded from delay rates. Historical BTS figures are separate from DelayGuard's per-flight model probability and from live FAA, weather and ground-delay status.
Predict a SNA flight
Historical BTS on-time (15+ min) at SNA
Sample size: 131,590 flights, window: January 2023 to December 2025. Delay rate 18.2%. Cancellation rate 0.99% of 88,516 scheduled flights, 2024 to 2025.
Why SNA runs the way it does
No single carrier dominates SNA. The largest carriers in this window, by departures, are Southwest Airlines (33.4%), American Airlines (14.8%) and United Airlines (13.9%), so the airport's record reflects several operations rather than one hub schedule.
SNA delays peak in July (22.4%), June (21.1%) and March (19.9%) and are lowest in September (14.5%). That shape is consistent with the summer thunderstorm season, when convective weather builds through the afternoon and slows arrivals and departures.
Delays build through the day: 8.4% of flights scheduled before 8 AM ran late against 15.9% after 8 PM. That is the pattern BTS describes as late-arriving aircraft, where a previous flight with the same aircraft arriving late makes the next departure late.
Best and worst times to fly from SNA
SNA delay rate by scheduled departure hour (hours with 100+ flights)| Hour | Delayed 15+ min | Flights |
|---|
| 6 AM | 7.1% | 9,455 |
| 7 AM | 9.4% | 12,000 |
| 8 AM | 9.9% | 8,861 |
| 9 AM | 13.5% | 8,100 |
| 10 AM | 14.5% | 9,673 |
| 11 AM | 18.9% | 10,197 |
| 12 PM | 23.3% | 9,823 |
| 1 PM | 24.1% | 10,562 |
| 2 PM | 24.7% | 7,421 |
| 3 PM | 24.1% | 7,245 |
| 4 PM | 24.3% | 8,436 |
| 5 PM | 21.8% | 7,130 |
| 6 PM | 23.8% | 7,527 |
| 7 PM | 24.0% | 7,358 |
| 8 PM | 20.0% | 4,922 |
| 9 PM | 9.0% | 2,880 |
SNA delays and cancellations by month
SNA by month| Month | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|
| Jan | 18.5% | 10,651 | 1.39% |
| Feb | 16.4% | 9,800 | 1.11% |
| Mar | 19.9% | 11,106 | 0.79% |
| Apr | 18.8% | 10,714 | 0.61% |
| May | 19.6% | 11,358 | 0.94% |
| Jun | 21.1% | 11,147 | 1.15% |
| Jul | 22.4% | 11,337 | 1.92% |
| Aug | 18.0% | 11,310 | 0.84% |
| Sep | 14.5% | 10,932 | 0.54% |
| Oct | 15.8% | 11,329 | 0.48% |
| Nov | 15.6% | 10,919 | 1.05% |
| Dec | 17.1% | 10,987 | 1.04% |
Airlines at SNA
Carriers flying from SNA (1,000+ flights)| Airline | Share of departures | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled |
|---|
| Southwest Airlines | 33.4% | 17.7% | 43,922 | 0.74% |
| American Airlines | 14.8% | 18.7% | 19,517 | 1.45% |
| United Airlines | 13.9% | 16.1% | 18,302 | 0.62% |
| Delta Air Lines | 10.7% | 15.9% | 14,038 | 0.60% |
| SkyWest Airlines | 10.0% | 24.4% | 13,107 | 1.32% |
| Alaska Airlines | 9.3% | 13.1% | 12,279 | 1.36% |
| Spirit Airlines (ceased 2 May 2026) | 2.8% | 15.9% | 3,746 | 1.13% |
| Frontier Airlines | 2.7% | 25.3% | 3,525 | 1.85% |
| Allegiant Air | 2.4% | 32.7% | 3,154 | 1.46% |
Regional operators are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
Routes from SNA
Routes from SNA (500+ flights)| Route | Delayed 15+ min | Flights | Cancelled | Link |
|---|
| SNA to SFO | 25.5% | 13,010 | 1.37% | Predict |
| SNA to PHX | 17.4% | 12,945 | 0.73% | Predict |
| SNA to LAS | 21.5% | 12,468 | 0.87% | Predict |
| SNA to SEA | 14.5% | 11,915 | 1.22% | Predict |
| SNA to DEN | 17.5% | 10,958 | 0.55% | Predict |
| SNA to DFW | 18.3% | 8,752 | 2.39% | Predict |
| SNA to SJC | 14.2% | 8,019 | 0.88% | Predict |
| SNA to OAK | 15.3% | 7,894 | 0.96% | Predict |
| SNA to SMF | 17.0% | 6,733 | 0.66% | Predict |
| SNA to ORD | 16.9% | 6,616 | 0.61% | Predict |
| SNA to SLC | 14.0% | 5,050 | 0.38% | Predict |
| SNA to PDX | 10.7% | 3,933 | 1.11% | Predict |
| SNA to IAH | 12.8% | 3,756 | 0.82% | Predict |
| SNA to EWR | 18.3% | 3,168 | 1.24% | Predict |
| SNA to ATL | 16.8% | 3,089 | 0.96% | Predict |
Los Angeles (LAX) full delay guide
Questions
- How often are flights delayed at SNA?
- 18.2% of flights departing SNA arrived 15 or more minutes late across 131,590 flights, January 2023 to December 2025 (BTS). Across all US domestic flights in the data, the rate is 21.2%.
- What is the best time to fly from SNA?
- Early departures run best. 6 AM flights ran 7.1% late (9,455 flights), 9 PM flights ran 9.0% late (2,880 flights) and 7 AM flights ran 9.4% late (12,000 flights). The worst hours are 2 PM (24.7%), 4 PM (24.3%) and 3 PM (24.1%).
- Which month is worst for delays at SNA?
- July has the highest delay rate at 22.4%. September is the lowest at 14.5%.
- Which airline has the best on-time record at SNA?
- Among carriers still flying with at least 5,000 flights from SNA, Alaska Airlines has the lowest delay rate at 13.1% (12,279 flights). SkyWest Airlines is highest at 24.4%. Regional operators such as SkyWest are reported separately from the airline brands they fly for.
- How often are SNA flights cancelled?
- 0.99% of 88,516 scheduled departures from SNA were cancelled in 2024 to 2025. The US figure over the same period is 1.41%. See the full ranking on the cancellation rates page.
- Does DelayGuard show live delays at SNA?
- The predictor covers SNA flights with a model probability that combines history, weather and FAA data. This page shows historical BTS figures only.
- Is SNA better than nearby airports?
- Compare SNA with LAX (18.4%), BUR (17.6%) and ONT (16.6%) on the Los Angeles area: LAX vs BUR vs SNA vs ONT compared page. Those are the delay rates for flights departing each airport over the same window.