U.S. Airlines Still Lag Far Behind Global Carriers for On-Time Performance
Skift Take
European airlines accounted for nearly half of the world’s top 20 airlines measured by best on-time performance in November, and many European carriers jumped several spots from their October ranking.
Aeroflot was the world’s most prompt airline last month, one of nine European carriers making FlightStats top 20 list with 93.22% of its 21,919 scheduled flights arriving on-time. Though it may have had the best record, Aeroflot’s average delay time was 73.48 minutes, the highest out of any airline FlightStats looked at. Aeroflot was number two overall in October.
Iberia took a hard fall in November, dropping six spots to number seven after being first overall in October. Two Japanese airlines, JAL and ANA, made the top 10, as well as Saudia, Saudi Arabia’s flagship carrier. Delta is the sole U.S. airline in the top 20, with 15.52% of its flights delayed and an average delay time of 55.32 minutes.
Alaska Airlines held onto its perch as most on-time airline on the top 10 list for U.S airlines, with 86.44% of flights on-time and a 44.37 average delay time, the shortest delay time for the list. Delta, Virgin America and Southwest following Alaska in second, third and fourth place respectively.
The top 13 most on-time global airlines all had smaller delay percentages than all top 10 U.S. airlines. American Airlines at the bottom of the U.S. list has an on-time percentage (76.46%) that’s more than 7% lower than TAM Linhas Aereas at the bottom of the global list with 83.68% of its flights arriving on-time.
Top 20 Most On-Time Global Airlines for November 2014
| Rank | Airline | Scheduled Flights | On-Time % | Delay % | Avg. Delay (Minutes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aeroflot | 21,919 | 93.22% | 6.78% | 73.48 |
| 2 | SAS | 25,103 | 92.45% | 7.55% | 33.24 |
| 3 | Austrian | 9,179 | 92.07% | 7.93% | 37.67 |
| 4 | JAL | 21,987 | 91.95% | 8.05% | 36.26 |
| 5 | KLM | 17,576 | 91.25% | 8.75% | 43.6 |
| 6 | ANA | 36,117 | 90.30% | 9.70% | 30.95 |
| 7 | Iberia | 14,032 | 89.89% | 10.11% | 33.42 |
| 8 | Lufthansa | 41,433 | 89.61% | 10.39% | 33.49 |
| 9 | Saudia | 15,100 | 88.99% | 11.01% | 40.51 |
| 10 | Air Berlin | 14,659 | 88.78% | 11.22% | 35.48 |
| 11 | Air Europa | 5,866 | 88.60% | 11.40% | 37.11 |
| 12 | Air New Zealand | 16,158 | 88.17% | 11.83% | 32.73 |
| 13 | Jet Airways | 14,578 | 87.10% | 12.90% | 38.95 |
| 14 | Virgin Australia | 14,558 | 85.74% | 14.26% | 46.86 |
| 15 | Korean Air | 11,525 | 85.60% | 14.40% | 26.93 |
| 16 | Air France | 28,324 | 85.16% | 14.84% | 33.89 |
| 17 | Delta Air Lines | 146,116 | 84.48% | 15.52% | 55.32 |
| 18 | Qantas | 21,930 | 84.19% | 15.81% | 45.84 |
| 19 | Singapore Airlines | 6,839 | 84.19% | 15.81% | 32.34 |
| 20 | TAM Linhas Aereas | 24,495 | 83.68% | 16.32% | 44.94 |
Top 10 Most On-Time U.S. Airlines for November 2014
| Rank | Airline | Scheduled Flights | On-Time % | Delay % | Avg. Delay (Minutes) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaksa Airlines | 26,099 | 86.44% | 13.56% | 44.37 |
| 2 | Delta Air Lines | 146,116 | 84.48% | 15.52% | 55.32 |
| 3 | Virgin America | 4,837 | 83.22% | 16.78% | 63.68 |
| 4 | Southwest Airlines | 97,012 | 82.85% | 17.15% | 44.76 |
| 5 | JetBlue Airways | 24,095 | 82.46% | 17.54% | 50.69 |
| 6 | US Airways | 87,770 | 80.02% | 19.58% | 50 |
| 7 | United Airlines | 142,787 | 78.29% | 21.71% | 60.83 |
| 8 | Air Canada | 42,799 | 77.43% | 22.57% | 50.24 |
| 9 | Spirit Airlines | 9,038 | 77.24% | 22.76% | 59.49 |
| 10 | American Airlines | 100,749 | 76.46% | 23.54% | 56.63 |
Source: FlightStats
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