One of the most annoying problems for travellers is arriving at the airport only to find your flight has been delayed. But with a new list of the world’s most punctual airlines, avoiding that situation could be easier than ever.
The best airlines for punctuality. Image by Yiu Yu Hoi/Getty Images
The OAG Punctuality League 2019 is a ranking of the world’s largest airlines in terms of on-time performance (OTP) – or flights that arrive or depart within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival and departure times. The most punctual airline in the world might surprise you: Copa Airlines in Panama made the top of the list with 89.79% of its flights on time, followed by Latvia’s airBaltic (89.17%) and Hong Kong Airlines (88.11%).
But, larger airlines face more potential delays, so when it comes to the the top “mega airlines” it’s best to look to Chile’s LATAM Airlines Group (85.60%), followed by All Nippon Airways (84.43%), Japan Airlines (83.99%), Delta Air Lines (83.08%), and Alaska Airlines (82.61%). In North America, the most on-time airlines overall are Hawaiian (87.52%), Delta (83.08%), Alaska (82.61%), Spirit (80.83%), and Southwest (78.20%).
Travelling has many potential delays, but your airline doesn’t have to be one of them. Image by ©Maurizio Milanesio/Shutterstock
If you want to travel on a low-cost carrier, the top five for punctuality are: Azul (85.21%), Jetstar Asia (84.13%), Solaseed (82.90%), Mango (82.88%), and Volaris (82.04%). According to the report, many of Europe’s low-cost airlines fell in this year’s rankings, due to factors beyond their control like industrial action, supplier issues and inclement weather.
“On-time performance is one of the single most important metrics in the travel industry. Every on-time arrival and departure creates a significant trickle-down impact that affects travellers, other airlines and airports, business, travel suppliers and more,” said John Grant, senior analyst with OAG, in a statement.
However, if you want a second opinion, aviation data and analytics company FlightStats just named Delta the world’s most on-time mainline airline in 2018 in its annual On-Time Performance Service (OPS) Awards. That report put Delta in the lead for the second year, with 86.09% of its flights on time, followed by Qatar Airways (85.88%) and KLM (85.04%).
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