Best time to fly out of Santa Rosa (STS)
The early-flight folk wisdom holds up at Charles M. Schulz Sonoma: departures in the 6–8am band left on time 92.3% of the time, against 77.7% in the 2–4pm band. These are historical odds, not forecasts. The records say what happened on this schedule over three years; they know nothing about tomorrow’s thunderstorm.
Data through June 2026 · Bureau of Transportation Statistics
On-time rate by hour and day
On this page, “on time” means a departure that pushed back less than 15 minutes behind its scheduled time — the Bureau of Transportation Statistics definition, and the one airlines are held to.
| Departure time | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before 6am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 6–8am | 92 | 94 | 92 | 95 | 89 | 92 | 93 |
| 8–10am | 83 | 87 | 92 | 81 | 78 | 84 | 85 |
| 10am–12pm | 82 | 86 | 85 | 81 | 78 | 84 | 84 |
| 12–2pm | 75 | 80 | 83 | 77 | 74 | 81 | 76 |
| 2–4pm | 73 | 83 | 80 | 77 | 76 | 82 | 76 |
| 4–6pm | 79 | 86 | 87 | 81 | 75 | 83 | 78 |
| 6–8pm | 74 | 82 | 85 | 77 | 74 | 87 | 73 |
| 8–10pm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 10pm–12am | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
The steadiest stretch at STS was 6–8am — 92.3% of departures left on time across 1,882 flights. The weakest was 2–4pm at 77.7%. 6–8am departures from STS left on time 92.3% of the time across 1,882 flights; 6–8pm departures, 77.9% across 1,680. That is a gap of 14.4 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
The year at STS
December was the hard month at STS: 72.7% of departures left on time, across 1,069 flights. March was the easy one at 85.4%. Each month pools three years of that month, so a single bad week does not decide it.
| Month | Share departures that left on time | Flights |
|---|---|---|
| January | 83% | 893 |
| February | 83.3% | 804 |
| March | 85.4% | 1,042 |
| April | 84.2% | 1,186 |
| May | 82% | 1,286 |
| June | 77.2% | 1,286 |
| July | 80.1% | 979 |
| August | 82% | 1,088 |
| September | 82.6% | 1,173 |
| October | 83.9% | 1,084 |
| November | 79.7% | 1,186 |
| December | 72.7% | 1,069 |
Airlines at STS
Every airline with at least 100 departures from STS, busiest first. These are that airline’s departures from this airport only — its record across the country sits on its own page.
| Airline | Left on time | Typical delay | Cancelled | Departures |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkyWest Airlines | 82.2% | 70 min | 1.2% | 10,089 |
| Envoy Air | 84.1% | 55 min | 0.2% | 1,179 |
| Alaska Airlines | 78.6% | 53 min | 1.7% | 1,000 |
| American Airlines | 65.1% | 121 min | 0.4% | 512 |
| Southwest Airlines | 74.7% | 53 min | 0% | 296 |
What delays out of STS were put down to
Airlines file a reason with every arrival running 15 minutes late or more. Across 2,816 flights that departed STS and ran 15 minutes late or more, the delay minutes break down with 45.8% put down to late-arriving aircraft and 26.7% to airline operations.
- Late-arriving aircraft 45.8%
- Airline operations 26.7%
- Air traffic & airport volume 17%
- Severe weather 10.5%
- Security 0.1%
Late-arriving aircraft is the knock-on category: the plane came in late, so it went out late again. It is why a 7am problem in Newark is still a problem in Denver at dinnertime, and why it is usually the biggest slice on the bar.
If you are connecting through STS
Of 13,081 scheduled arrivals into STS, 78.7% reached the gate less than 15 minutes behind schedule. Of the 2,558 arrivals that ran late, 60.4% were no more than 45 minutes behind — which is the difference between a tight connection and a new boarding pass.
Work out a specific layover — pick the airport and the minutes you have, and the tool reads the same arrival records back as a share.
Busiest routes out of STS
Ranked by flights, with the share that arrived on time at the far end. Where a route carries enough flights for a page of its own the chip goes there; otherwise it goes to the destination airport.
- SAN 74.8% on time · 2,332 flights
- SNA 78.2% on time · 2,024 flights
- LAX 81% on time · 1,974 flights
- PHX 80.9% on time · 1,779 flights
- SEA 74.3% on time · 1,413 flights
- BUR 76.2% on time · 1,133 flights
- PDX 86% on time · 1,064 flights
- DFW 70.3% on time · 610 flights
- LAS 78.6% on time · 516 flights
- PSP 82% on time · 142 flights
STS in one number
Charles M. Schulz Sonoma (STS)
Rank 150 of 363 US airports by departures. Steadiest stretch of the day: 6–8am. Hardest month: December.
Questions about STS
- What is the best time of day to fly out of Charles M. Schulz Sonoma?
- 6–8am. Departures in that band left on time 92.3% of the time across 1,882 flights, July 2023 through June 2026 — the best of the ten bands in the day. The 2–4pm band was the weakest at 77.7%.
- Is the early flight out of STS really more reliable?
- 6–8am departures from STS left on time 92.3% of the time across 1,882 flights; 6–8pm departures, 77.9% across 1,680. That is a gap of 14.4 points, and it is the whole case for the early flight.
- What is the worst month to fly out of STS?
- December: 72.7% of the departures that flew left on time, with 1,069 scheduled. March was the other end of the year at 85.4%. Each figure pools three years of that calendar month.
- Which airline is most on time at STS?
- Envoy Air — 84.1% of its 1,179 departures from STS left on time. American Airlines sat at the other end at 65.1% over 512 flights. Only airlines with at least 100 departures here are ranked.
- How often are flights cancelled at STS?
- 1.1% of scheduled departures were cancelled over July 2023 through June 2026. Cancellations are counted against everything scheduled, not against everything that flew — a rate that looks small still adds up to real people in a rebooking line.