DALLAS — Punctuality or on-time performance is an important factor for travelers when choosing an airline or airport. It can be frustrating to experience delays, whether they are due to technical issues, bad weather, staffing issues, or other unexpected events.
According to the data from data analytics company Cirium, the airline with the highest on-time performance in 2022 was Azul Brazilian Airlines (AD), with an on-time arrival rate of 88.93%, narrowly edging out Japan’s ANA All Nippon Airways (NH) and Japan Airlines (JL), with an on-time arrival rate of 88.61% and 88%, respectively.
The majority of AD’s flights arrived at their destinations within 15 minutes of the scheduled time of arrival.
2022 saw a challenging operational environment across the industry, particularly in Europe and North America, with many airlines and airports experiencing thousands of delays, disruptions, and staffing issues, among other resource challenges. Other regions continued to emerge from COVID restrictions, especially in the Asia Pacific region.
From region to region, the most punctual carriers were Delta Air Lines (DL) in North America, Iberia (IB) in Europe, AD in Latin America, Thai AirAsia (FD) in AsiaPacific, and Oman Air (WY) in the Middle East and Africa. Moreover, StarFlyer (7G) was the most punctual low-cost carrier in 2022.
For a flight to be on time, it must arrive at the gate within 15 minutes (in fact, 14:59 minutes) of its scheduled arrival time, whereas the airport’s performance is measured by whether flights departed within 15 minutes of the scheduled departure time or not.
Even though it is not codified by regulatory bodies and there is some variation globally; most of the airlines and airports follow the Cirium definition of on-time performance.
In this post, we share all the top 10 airlines and airports which offered the best on-time performance in 2022.
Top 10 Global Airlines for on-time Performance
Here are the top 10 global airline statistics with the best on-time performance in 2022, led by AAD.
1: Azul Airlines (AD)
Number of total flights: 279,722
On-time performance: 88.93%
Region: Latin America
“Azul Airlines has been named as the global leader for airline on-time performance for 2022 by Cirium, the global aviation analytics leader. The Cirium 2022 On-Time Performance Review is the global gold standard for airline and airport performance and it will be published later this week, containing results for all airline categories, more detail and analysis.”
CIRIUM
2. ANA All Nippon Airways (NH)
Number of total flights: 162,370
On-time performance: 88.61%
Region: Asia Pacific
3: Japan Airlines (JL)
Number of total flights: 165,981
On-time performance: 88.00%
Region: Asia Pacific
4: LATAM Airlines (LA)
Number of total flights: 451,651
On-time performance: 86.31%
Region: Latin America
5: Delta Air Lines (DL)
Number of total flights: 1,004,684
On-time performance: 83.63%
Region: North America
Coming in at number 5 among global airlines, Delta Air Lines was honored with the Cirium Platinum Award for global operational excellence for the second consecutive year. A number of factors, including on-time performance, operational complexity, and an airline’s ability to limit the impact of flight disruptions, are considered for the Cirium Platinum Award.
“The past year saw a challenging operational environment across the world, particularly in Europe and North America, with many airlines and airports experiencing delays, disruptions and resource challenges. Others continue to emerge from Covid restrictions, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. Despite this climate, many airlines and airports worldwide excelled.”
CIRIUM
Delta has consistently ranked among the top performers in this regard for several years. This is no small feat, considering the challenges that airlines face when it comes to managing weather-related delays, staffing issues, maintenance issues, and other unexpected issues.
One of the key factors behind DL’s success is the airline’s strong focus on operational efficiency and reliability. In addition, the airline has a comprehensive contingency plan in place to help minimize the impact of delays and disruptions.
This includes options such as rerouting passengers on alternative flights or providing accommodations and meals if necessary.
6: Avianca (AV)
Number of total flights: 144,525
On-time performance: 83.48%
Region: Latin America
7: Emirates (EK)
Number of total flights: 137,589
On-time performance: 81.30%
Region: Middle East and Africa
8: United Airlines (UA)
Number of total flights: 789,200
On-time performance: 80.46%
Region: North America
(FIFA World Cup 2022 sticker). Photo: Alberto Cucini/Airways
9: Qatar Airways (QR)
Number of total flights: 152,377
On-time performance: 78.32%
Region: Middle East and Africa
10: American Airlines (AA)
Number of total flights: 1,076,100
On-time performance: 78.29%
Region: North America
A good number of carriers faced delays and cancellations due to the sudden surge in demand for air travel in the first half of 2022 and the widespread lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.
Although the travel restrictions were eased across Europe, none of the European carriers featured in the “Global Top 10” list of the most punctual carriers.
Among European carriers, the most-punctual airline was the Spanish flag carrier IB, with an on-time arrival rate of 85.87% followed by Air Europa (UX) and Iberia Express with an on-time arrival rate of 84.10% and 83.80% respectively.
While the aviation industry as a whole experienced significant operational challenges, things got particularly bad across Europe due to widespread staffing issues and shortages.
On the other side of the pond, apart from along with AD, LA, and AV, the three major US carriers, DL, UA, and AA, all managed to make it into the Top 10 despite facing substantial challenges.
Top 10 Low-Cost Airlines for on-time Performance
According to Cirium, 7G was the most punctual low-cost carrier in 2022 with an on-time arrival rate of a whopping 95.23%, closely followed by Solaseed Air (6J) with an on-time arrival rate of 94.53%. More in-depth statistics for the top 10 low-cost airlines are as follows:
| Airline | On-time ranking | On-time arrival | Total flights |
| StarFlyer (7G) | 1 | 95.23% | 21,894 |
| Solaseed Air (6J) | 2 | 94.53% | 27,486 |
| Thai AirAsia (FD) | 3 | 91.56% | 66,043 |
| Azul (AD) | 4 | 88.93% | 279,722 |
| SKY Airline (H2) | 5 | 88.74% | 27,161 |
| Air Do (HD) | 6 | 88.34% | 22,187 |
| IndiGo (6E) | 7 | 84.11% | 561,864 |
| Iberia Express (I2) | 8 | 83.80% | 35,665 |
| AirAsia India (I5) | 9 | 83.70% | 60,882 |
| Vueling (VY) | 10 | 82.04% | 197,546 |
Airbus A320-214. Photo: Alberto Cucini/Airways
Top 10 Global Airports for on-time Performance
When it comes to airports, the one with the highest on-time performance in 2022 was Japan’s Haneda Airport (HND), with an on-time departure rate of 90.33%. Other airports with high on-time performance in 2022 included Kempegowda International Airport (BLR), India, and Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), the United States, with an on-time departure rate of 84.08% and 83.87%, respectively.
Here are the top 10 global airports with the best on-time performance in 2022, led by HND.
1: Haneda Airport (HND), Japan
Number of total flights: 373,264
On-time performance: 90.33%
Region: Asia Pacific
2: Kempegowda International Airport (BLR), India
Number of total flights: 201,897
On-time performance: 84.08%
Region: Asia Pacific
3: Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), United States
Number of total flights: 226,545
On-time performance: 83.87%
Region: North America
4: Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), United States
Number of total flights: 271,963
On-time performance: 82.62%
Region: North America
5: Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), United States
Number of total flights: 233,777
On-time performance: 82.54%
Region: North America
6: Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), United States
Number of total flights: 276,346
On-time performance: 81.95%
Region: North America
7: Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL), India
Number of total flights: 411,205
On-time performance: 81.84%
Region: Asia Pacific
8: Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), United States
Number of total flights: 383,250
On-time performance: 81.04%
Region: North America
9: El Dorado International Airport (BOG), Colombia
Number of total flights: 273,721
On-time performance: 80.72%
Region: Latin America
10: Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT), United States
Number of total flights: 457,871
On-time performance: 80.68%
Region: North America
Have you flown on any of the airlines or passed through any of the airports mentioned in this list? Be sure to leave your comments on our social media channels.
Featured image: Azul PS-AEF Embraer E195-E2 (Blue Macaw livery) SBBR (Off airport). Photo: Thiago Machado/Airways. Article source: CIRIUM
