Which Are the Most Punctual Airlines Around the World Right Now?

Aeromexico was once again the most punctual airline in the world last month. In September 2024, more than 90 percent of its over 15,000 flights arrived at their scheduled destination on time, according to the latest data from Cirium.

Cirium’s monthly report on airlines’ on-time performance revealed that the Mexican flag carrier operated 15,344 flights in September, with an impressive 91.13 percent arriving at their destination on time. This significantly improved compared to August, when only 86.54 percent of its flights arrived on time.

The second most punctual global airline last month was Saudia, with 89.4 percent of its flight schedule on time. Following closely was the Colombian flag carrier Avianca, with 88.74 percent of its over 20,000 flights arriving on time.

The Most Punctual Airlines in North America

In North America, the most punctual airline in September was Delta, which achieved an impressive on-time performance of 87.81 percent out of 143,293 flights. Delta was followed by United in second place and Southwest Airlines in third, with an on-time performance of 86.47 percent and 84.18 percent, respectively.

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The three largest airlines in the U.S.—United, Delta, and American—were all in the top ten most punctual global airlines in September, in fourth, sixth, and tenth place, respectively.

The Most Punctual Airlines Around the World

Elsewhere, Spanish low-cost carrier Iberia Express was revealed as the most punctual European airline in September, followed by Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) and Air Europa in second and third place, respectively.

Photo: Courtesy of Iberia

The most punctual airline in Latin America was Aeromexico, somewhat unsurprisingly, given it was the most punctual global airline overall. The Mexican airline was followed by Panamanian flag carrier Copa Airlines in second place and Caribbean Airlines in third.

In Asia-Pacific, low-cost carrier Thai AirAsia was the most punctual last month, followed by Japanese carrier Japan Airlines (JAL) and All Nippon Airways (ANA) in second and third place, respectively.

Photo: Japan Airlines, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Courtesy of Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport

Finally, in the Middle East & Africa region, Saudia’s on-time performance was only good enough for sixth place, with Saudi Arabian low-cost carrier flyadeal coming out on top with an on-time performance of 93.86 percent. Safair and Oman Air had the second- and third-best on-time performance in the region last month.

The Most On-Time Airports in the World

In addition to looking at airlines, Cirium also tracks the on-time performance of airports worldwide. According to its data, Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH) was the best at keeping to its schedule last month, with just under 90 percent of its near 20,000 flights departing on time.

In second place, with an on-time departure rate of 89.11 percent, was Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (MSP), also recently named the most satisfying airport to travel through in North America by J.D. Power. In third place was the primary hub of Aeromexico, Mexico City’s Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX), with an on-time departure rate of 88.49 percent.

Here were the ten best global airports in terms of on-time departures in September 2024, according to Cirium: