SMF → MDWSacramento to Chicago

live

Direct flights from Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago (MDW): 12 nonstop departures observed each week across 1 airline. 79% of the last 14 tracked flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule. The median arrival is 3 minutes late. 1 of the 14 tracked flights was cancelled. The nonstop covers 2,874 km, an estimated 4 hours 11 minutes in the air. Measured by Pro Flight Search from live flight boards at Sacramento and Chicago. Updated 15 November 2026 at 21:53 UTC.

Today, SMF → MDW

Sun 15 Nov · local times
  1. 05:45 WN3976Southwest Airlines Left 07:18 +93 Landed 13:04 +84

Checked SMF board 10:18 · MDW board 15:53

SMF Sacramento busy · +18
MDW Chicago busy · +26
2,874 km · ~4h 11m est.
dep bank 05:45–23:5512x weekly
Runs mixed · 1 airline · 12x weekly · nonstop
79% on time

of the last 14 tracked SMF → MDW flights arrived within 15 minutes

Median arrival delay is +3 min. 1 of 14 tracked legs cancelled in the sample. Will a delayed flight be cancelled? →

Median arrival+3 minacross the last 13 arrivals
Flight time~4h 11mestimated from route distance
Weekly departures12x1 direct airline on the leg
Cancelled7.1%recent route rate · 1 of 14

The week

scheduled departures · origin local time
06121824
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Sun
Southwest Airlines

Each mark is a scheduled departure at its origin-local time, observed operating in the last 7 days. Today is highlighted.

Who flies it

observed on the boards · 7 days
Southwest AirlinesWN79% on time

Flights WN3976 05:45 Mo Tu We Th Fr Su · WN3573 11:15 Tu We · WN4028 23:55 Mo Th Fr Su

History

operated legs · board outcomes
11-15WN3976dep +93 → arr+84
11-14WN1278cancelledCNX
11-13WN3976dep +15 → arr+5
11-13WN4028dep +48 → arr+31
11-12WN3976dep +12 → arr+2
11-12WN4028dep +19 → arr+4
11-11WN3573dep +17 → arr−5
11-11WN3976dep +14 → arr+13
11-10WN3573dep +17 → arr−4
11-10WN3976arrived−20
11-09WN3976dep +13 → arr−12
11-09WN4028dep +11 → arr−8
11-08WN3976dep +11 → arr+5
11-08WN4028dep +13 → arr+3

Actual board outcomes rather than schedules, paired departure and arrival per flight and day.

Full board history, day by day →

Airports right now

live boards
SMFSacramento +18 min busy 🌤 overcast · SE 13 kt Full SMF delay board →
MDWChicago +26 min busy 🌤 few clouds · E 9 kt Full MDW delay board →

Weather lens

Conditions are tightest at SMF: a 41% chance of a 15+ minute delay. In this weather, the more delayed of the two airports is typically about +10 min. Both figures come from the two airports' delay records in similar weather. See live delays → · Weather risk by airport →

How the Sacramento to Chicago route actually runs

Pro Flight Search records official board updates for nonstop SMF to MDW flights through the day: schedules, estimates, gate pushes and actual departures. The verdict above comes from operated flights, so it reflects what this route does rather than what the timetable promises.

Planning around a delay? Live airport delays · Weather delay risk map · Will a delayed flight be cancelled? · Do planes make up time in the air? · How we measure

Cite this data

Journalists, bloggers, and researchers may cite this page with attribution and a link to Pro Flight Search.

Suggested citation

Pro Flight Search: Sacramento (SMF) to Chicago (MDW) route reliability, measured from operated flights on official airport boards.

Canonical URL
https://proflightsearch.com/search-flights/SMF-MDW
How we measure this →

SMF to MDW questions

Is SMF–MDW running on time right now?

Mostly on schedule. The arrival side at MDW is the weaker end, route health score 71/100. The airports section above carries the live status and delay window at both ends.

Morning or evening flight on SMF–MDW?

Operators schedule morning departures around 05:45 and evening departures around 23:55 from SMF. Earlier flights typically land before destination-airport delays accumulate later in the day; check the MDW delay card to confirm conditions when you'd arrive.

How long is the flight from SMF to MDW?

Great-circle distance is 2,874 km. With typical jet cruise speed plus taxi, climb and descent, expect roughly 233–276 min gate-to-gate on this route.

How often does SMF–MDW fly?

Southwest Airlines runs the route with about 12 flights a week (sun, mon, tue, wed, thu, fri). Since one carrier owns the route, a single disruption tends to ripple through the day.