Summary

  • Delta Air Lines remains the most punctual US carrier, with an on-time performance rate of over 80% in June.
  • Delta has held the top spot for six consecutive months, beating out Alaska Airlines and United Airlines.
  • Washington Dulles International was the most punctual US airport during the same period, leading the way in on-time departures.

Delta Air Lines was once again the most on-time US carrier in June, recording an on-time performance (OTP) rate of over 80%. This put Delta 8th globally behind the world’s most reliable airline, Saudia, while Washington Dulles International was the most on-time US airport during the same period.

Delta most on-time US airline

According to the latest Monthly On-Time Performance Report from aviation analytics firm Cirium, Delta made it six consecutive months as the country’s most on-time airline with an OTP of 80.05%. This was a slight decline from the 81.04% registered in May, itself a drop from Delta’s 85.73% OTP in April.

Delta Air Lines planes parked at Salt Lake City International Airport

Photo: JHVEPhoto | Shutterstock

The airline was followed by Alaska Airlines in second (77.79%) and United Airlines in third (77.44%), with American Airlines (73.62%) and Spirit Airlines (72.52%) rounding up the top five.

On-time performance measures flights arriving within 15 minutes of their scheduled arrival time; or for airports, flights departing within 15 minutes of schedule.

US carriers on-time performance June 2024

Ranking

Airline

On-Time Arrival

Total Flights

1

Delta Air Lines

80.05%

148,781

2

Alaska Airlines

77.79%

38,364

3

United Airlines

77.44%

136,737

4

American Airlines

73.62%

187,629

5

Spirit Airlines

72.52%

25,889

6

Southwest Airlines

72.48%

127,415

7

WestJet

71.95%

16,876

8

JetBlue

71.83%

27,374

9

Air Canada

69.60%

33,373

10

Frontier Airlines

64.18%

20,134

These ten airlines reached a collective on-time arrival rate of 73.15% over 762,572 total flights. There was a modest increase in flight cancelations in the US over June (11,806) compared to May (11,491), with most airlines holding up well during the start of the hectic summer season.

US airport on-time performance June 2024

Four US airports made the world’s top 20 most punctual airports – Washington Dulles International (IAD), Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International (ATL), Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County (DTW) and Los Angeles International (LAX).

United Airlines Boeing 757-224 and 767-322/ER at Washington Dulles International Airport.

Photo: Kristi Blokhin | Shutterstock

Global Ranking

Airport

On-Time Departure

Total Flights

Avg Dep Delay

Routes Served

8

Washington Dulles International Airport

80.43%

20,278

73

135

12

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

78.58%

66,200

58

230

16

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport

77.63%

25,225

76

112

17

Los Angeles International Airport

77.57%

44,534

64

182

Interestingly, one of Delta’s major hubs – Minneapolis-St. Paul International (MSP) – oversawsaw a large 12-point drop in on-time performance, declining from 82.56% in May to 70.60% last month.

The global picture

Airlines

Looking at the worldwide results for airlines, Delta was the only US carrier to make the top ten. Saudia continues its rapid progress toward becoming an elite global airline as June’s most punctual airline (88.22%), dethroning Aeromexico (86.18%), which came just ahead of LATAM Airlines (85.83%) in third.

A Saudia Boeing 777-300ER Flying in the sky.

Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying

Japan Airlines came fourth with an OTP of 85.10%, while another Latin American airline, Azul, jumped from 9th to 5th place with an OTP of 84.83%.

On-Time Ranking

Airline

On-Time Arrival

Total Flights

1

Saudia

88.22%

16,133

2

Aeromexico

86.18%

16,844

3

LATAM Airlines

85.83%

45,101

4

JAL

85.10%

25,731

5

Azul

84.83%

25,902

6

ANA

83.71%

24,376

7

Qatar Airways

81.01%

16,772

8

Delta Air Lines

80.05%

148,781

9

Avianca

79.97%

21,895

10

Iberia

77.69%

15,840

Airports

Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid International Airport (RUH) was once again crowned the world’s most punctual airport with an OTP of 85.60%, a slight decrease from last month (88.23%), out of a top five also dominated by Latin America.

Riyadh Airport

Photo: Fedor Selivanov | Shutterstock

Ranking

Airport

On-Time Departure

Total Flights

Avg Delay

Routes Served

1

King Khalid International Airport

85.60%

20,596

50

104

2

São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport

85.13%

21,318

43

96

3

Jorge Chavez International Airport

83.95%

14,297

70

63

4

Tokyo Haneda Airport

83.63%

38,672

32

99

5

Benito Juarez International Airport

82.64%

25,396

54

96

São Paulo (CGH) was the most punctual airport in the ‘Large’ category; Santos Dumont (SDU) topped the ‘Medium’ airports; while Cape Town (CPT) was the best of the ‘Small’ category.

Do you find Delta Air Lines to be the most reliable airline to fly with? Let us know why, or why not, in the comments section.

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