Santa Fe, NM

What the Data Says About SAF

Santa Fe, NM in Santa Fe, New Mexico handled 26,561 flights in the Bureau of Transportation Statistics dataset between 2020 and 2025, posting a 82% on-time departure rate. Of those flights, 4,773 experienced delays, 286 were cancelled, and 40 were diverted. The cancellation rate works out to 1.08%, the diversion rate to 0.15%, and the average delay when departures run late is 88.1 minutes. These figures are the baseline for comparing SAF against other airports in the same state and nationally.

Breaking down what drives delays at SAF, Carrier leads the pack. Carrier accounts for 40.5% of total delay minutes, followed by Late Aircraft at 27.5% and Weather at 19.5%. Weather contributes 19.5% of delay minutes at this airport, while security holds the smallest share at 0.2%. Travelers often overestimate the weather share; the BTS categorization shows late-arriving aircraft and carrier operations as the larger contributors.

Seasonally, September runs the cleanest at SAF with a 92.7% on-time rate, while June is the roughest at 89.5% — a 3-point swing between best and worst month. Volume peaks in October, when average flights hit 478. The busiest route from SAF is to SAF (Santa Fe), with 8,125 flights at a 80.7% on-time rate. Combine these numbers — 82% on-time, 88.1-minute average delay, 1.08% cancellation rate — and you have a concrete picture of departure reliability at Santa Fe, NM.