The Top Airlines with the Best Punctuality in 2023

Frequently, news stories related to airlines and airports tend to highlight the negative aspects such as long delays, bad weather, difficult passengers, and so on. Therefore, when there's an opportunity to recognize something positive in the aviation industry, it's worth acknowledging.

Flying high

Cirium, an aviation analytics company, has analyzed data to uncover the top airlines and airports with the best on-time performance worldwide. Whether you're based in a specific location or considering a future travel destination, these insights offer optimism for a hassle-free journey.

Cirium recognized winners in various continents, with Avianca, the Colombian flag carrier, taking home the overall prize for Most Punctual Airline. Avianca is typically styled with a lowercase A at the beginning and is part of the Star Alliance network. Meanwhile, Copa, the national airline of Panama, was awarded the title of most punctual airline in South America.

Japans All Nippon Airways (ANA) was the most punctual airline in Asia. In North America, Delta Air Lines held the title, while Europe's top spot went to Iberia Express. In the Middle East and Africa, Oman Air, which celebrated its 30th birthday in 2023, claimed the top spot for punctuality.

Delta Air Lines scored high marks in North America.

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Upon further analysis, a more varied picture of on-time flights emerges. Cirium's rankings took into account on-time arrivals, tracked flights, and total flights. Avianca, according to Cirium's findings, achieved an 85.73% on-time arrival rate out of a total of 213,039 flights.

Meanwhile, Delta and American Airlines, both based in the US, significantly surpassed the other airlines in terms of total flights. In 2023, Delta had 1,635,486 flights departing with an 84.72% on-time arrival rate, while American Airlines operated 1,998,844 flights with an 80.61% successful on-time arrival record. Additionally, Qatar Airways and Japan Airlines also achieved high on-time arrival rates at 85.11% and 82.58% respectively.

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In 2023, the airline industry showed remarkable resilience after facing adversity from the pandemic, according to David White, senior director of advanced initiatives at Cirium. "Even with the difficulties, the top airlines were able to end the year with impressive on-time performance metrics," White stated.

Cirium also highlighted smaller, budget-friendly airlines. The top five included Safair (South Africa), Azul (Brazil), Hong Kong Express, JetStar Japan, and Iberia Express (Spain).

The complete report also pointed out that airline delays are not always solely the fault of the airline. Weather, airport traffic, and staffing issues can also play a role.

Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport (MSP) took the prize in the large-size airport category.

Anthony Souffle/AP

Airport awards

In 2023, according to Cirium, Minneapolis-St Paul (MSP) in Minnesota was ranked as the top airport in the world for punctuality. Meanwhile, Osaka International (ITM) in Japan was named the most punctual medium-sized airport, even though it is not the main air hub for Osaka, as most international visitors arrive via Kansai International Airport (KIX), located about an hour outside the city.

The Osaka International Airport, also known as Itami, serves as a domestic hub in the country despite its name.

On the other hand, Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO) was the winner in the small-airport category and serves Quito, Ecuador.