Oman Air was the most on-time airline in MEA in 2023
Delta Air Lines wins Cirium Platinum Award for the third year
Oman Air was the leading airline for on-time performance in 2023 in the Middle East and Africa MEA) region, with 92.53% on-time performance across 45,908 flights, as revealed by the newly released Cirium 2023 On-Time Performance Review. The coveted position of the most on-time global airline went to Avianca Airlines, based in Bogota, Columbia.
Issued by Cirium, the world’s most trusted source of aviation analytics, the Cirium On-Time Performance Review is the gold standard for airline and airport performance.
The On-Time Performance 2023 Review provides airports, airlines, and air passengers with a neutral, third-party view of which airlines are delivering on their promise to get passengers from point A to point B on-time.
MEA region
In the Middle East and Africa ranking category (top five), Oman Air was followed by Safair with 92.36% on-time arrival out of 55,444 flights, followed by Royal Air Jordanian with 87.51% on-time arrival out of 32,706 flights, followed by Qatar Airways with 85.11% on-time arrival with 183,090 flights and finally, Etihad Airways with 82.90% of on-time flights out of 65,376 flights.
Interestingly enough, Emirates and Flydubai, both failed to make it to the Cirium 2023 On-Time Performance Review for on-time performance in 2023.
The winners in the other regions were ANA for Asia-Pacific, Oman Air for the Middle East and Africa, Copa in Latin America, and Iberia Express in Europe. Safair was the leading low-cost carrier and Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport was the top airport performer globally.
The definition
Cirium defines an on-time flight as one that arrives within 15 minutes of the scheduled gate arrival. For an airport, it is defined as departing within 15 minutes of its scheduled departure.
Separately, Delta Air Lines has won the Cirium Platinum Award for the third year running, a demonstration of its commitment to operational performance and minimising passenger disruption,
In addition to Delta winning the Cirium Platinum Award, the airline also topped the rankings for being the most on-time airline in North America.
Jeremy Bowen, CEO of Cirium, stated: “It’s incredible to witness Delta Air Lines winning its third consecutive Platinum Award and topping the North American category. Other airline and airport winners steered through the year’s operational hurdles with exceptional performance. Their relentless pursuit of efficiency and punctuality is commendable as we venture into 2024, a year brimming with promise for the aviation sector.”
Global monitoring
The Cirium On-Time Performance programme meticulously monitors global airline operational performance. Cirium’s extensive and unbiased data, derived from over 600 real-time information sources, is essential for industry stakeholders. The data encompasses airlines, airports, global distribution systems, civil aviation authorities, and more, ensuring a comprehensive and neutral perspective.
Cirium’s data and analytics provide industry stakeholders with a neutral, third-party perspective, based on the widest and deepest pool of information collected and curated from more than 600 sources of real-time flight information.
These include the airlines themselves, airports, global distribution systems, positional data, civil aviation authorities, air navigation service providers, proprietary data partnerships and the internet.
Cirium’s on-time performance data is backed by a completely independent board of advisors, comprised of industry experts with an unbiased view of the aviation sector.
Featured image: Oman Airways outdid all other Middle East and Africa region airlines in terms of on-time performance in 2023: Image: Oman Airways
Cirium On-Time Performance 2023 Review: Top 5 performers in all categories:
Top 5 global airline leaders:
| Airline | On time ranking | On-time ranking | Total flights | |||
| Avianca Airlines (AV) | 1 | 85.73% | 213,039 | |||
| Azul Airlines (AD) | 2 | 85.51% | 310,972 | |||
| Qatar Airways (QR) | 3 | 85.11% | 183,090 | |||
| Delta Air Lines (DL) | 4 | 84.72% | 1,635,486 | |||
| Iberia (IB) | 5 | 84.38% | 170,750 |
Top 5 airlines in North America:
| Airline | On-time arrival | On time arrival | Total flights | |||
| Delta Air Lines (DL) | 1 | 84.72% | 1,635,486 | |||
| Alaska Airlines (AS) | 2 | 82.25% | 404,925 | |||
| American Airlines (AA) | 3 | 80.61% | 1,998,844 | |||
| United Airlines (UA) | 4 | 80.04% | 1,513,432 | |||
| Southwest Airlines (WN) | 5 | 76.26% | 1,459,926 |
Top 5 airlines in Europe:
| Airline | On time ranking | On-time ranking | Total flights | |||
| Iberia Express (I2) | 1 | 84.58% | 40,985 | |||
| Iberia (IB) | 2 | 84.38% | 170,750 | |||
| Austrian Airlines (OS) | 3 | 82.99% | 113,587 | |||
| LOT Polish Airlines (LO) | 4 | 82.83% | 96,112 | |||
| Norwegian Air Shuttle (DY) | 5 | 82.75% | 82,791 |
Top 5 airlines in Latin America:
| Airline | On-time arrival | On time arrival | Total flights | |||
| Copa Airlines (CM) | 1 | 89.46% | 115,657 | |||
| Avianca Airlines (AV) | 2 | 85.73% | 213,039 | |||
| Azul Airlines (AD) | 3 | 85.51% | 310,972 | |||
| LATAM Airlines (LA) | 4 | 84.00% | 508,721 | |||
| Caribbean Airlines (BW) | 5 | 81.73% | 26,644 |
Top 5 airlines in Asia-Pacific:
| Airline | On time ranking | On-time arrival | Total flights | |||
| All Nippon Airways (NH) | 1 | 82.75% | 302,279 | |||
| Japan Airlines (JL) | 2 | 82.58% | 308,302 | |||
| Thai AirAsia (FD) | 3 | 82.52% | 113,871 | |||
| IndiGo (6E) | 4 | 82.12% | 678,446 | |||
| Air New Zealand (NZ) | 5 | 79.68% | 175,876 |
Top 5 airlines in the Middle East and Africa:
| Airline | On-time arrival | On time arrival | Total flights | |||
| Oman Air (WY) | 1 | 92.53% | 45,908 | |||
| Safair (FA) | 2 | 92.36% | 55,444 | |||
| Royal Air Jordanian (RJ) | 3 | 87.51% | 32,706 | |||
| Qatar Airways (QR) | 4 | 85.11% | 183,090 | |||
| Etihad Airways (EY) | 5 | 82.90% | 65,376 |
Top 5 low-cost carriers:
| Airline | On time ranking | On-time arrival | Total flights | |||
| Safair (FA) | 1 | 92.36% | 55,444 | |||
| Azul Airlines (AD) | 2 | 85.51% | 310,972 | |||
| Hong Kong Express (UO) | 3 | 85.23% | 23,761 | |||
| Jetstar Japan (GK) | 4 | 84.60% | 33,932 | |||
| Iberia Express (I2) | 5 | 83.58% | 40,985 |
Top 5 performing global airports:
| Airport | On-time departure | On time departure | Total flights | |||
| Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) | 1 | 84.44% | 289,817 | |||
| Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (HYD) | 2 | 84.42% | 168,426 | |||
| Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) | 3 | 84.08% | 237,461 | |||
| El Dorado International Airport (BOG) | 4 | 84.01% | 292,486 | |||
| Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) | 5 | 83.99% | 226,705 |
Last Updated on 9 months by Arnold Pinto
