Delta Airlines has become the most on-time carriers among North American airlines, as per the on-time arrival rankings by Cirium Aviation Analytics 2023. Followed by Delta Airlines, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines are in the top five. Spirit Airlines, WestJet, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airlines, and Air Canada complete the top 10.
The leading 10 airlines achieved a 74.45 percent on-time rate for the year across more than 8 million flights, surpassing the 2022 rate by 0.19 percent.
For a flight to be deemed on time, it must land or take off within 15 minutes of the published scheduled time. According to the US Department of Transportation’s 2022 estimation, every minute of delay for an aircraft incurs a cost of approximately $100. These delays collectively impose a significant financial burden on the industry, totaling over $1 billion annually.
Last year in October, IndiGo had introduced fuel charges on both domestic and international routes, citing the significant surge in ATF prices over the preceding three months, marked by consecutive monthly hikes. Given that ATF constitutes a substantial portion of an airline’s operating expenses, IndiGo had justified the fare adjustment as a necessary measure to address the cost surge.
US flight cancellations fell to the lowest rate in at least a decade in 2023, the US Transportation Department said Wednesday, after a string of bumpy years for air travel.There were 16.3 million US flights in 2023 and a cancellation rate of below 1.2 per cent, the lowest since at least 2013, USDOT said, adding that it was even better over the holidays.
The cancellation rate for the period from December 17, 2023 through January 1, 2024 was 0.8 per cent, despite a record number of passengers, the department said.
That was far below last holiday season’s 8.2 per cent cancellation rate, which included the Southwest Airlines meltdown that disrupted 2 million passengers and led to a record-setting $140 million civil penalty last month.
