More than a quarter of flights into the UK are delayed, new figures from Which? have revealed.
A study of more than 850,000 flights touching down in UK airports found that 26% arrived more than 15 minutes late.
Canadian carrier Air Transat had the worst punctuality record according to Which?, with 45% of its UK-bound flights delayed. The study also found that Icelandair (44% of flights delayed) and Norwegian Air Shuttle (40%) had especially poor punctuality records.
At the other end of the spectrum, Dutch carrier KLM placed top of the punctuality league: just 12% of its UK-bound flights arrived more than 15 minutes late according to Which?. Qatar (14% of flights delayed) and Iberia (16%) weren't far behind.
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Ryanair (23% of flights delayed), British Airways (26%) and easyJet (34%) all had fairly average punctuality records, the study found.
A BA representative told The Independent: "These figures confirm our own findings, that our short-haul punctuality is significantly better than that of our biggest short-haul rivals. And unlike Ryanair, we fly between primary airports where aircraft congestion can increase potential for delays."
An easyJet spokesperson also offered a comment on the findings, saying: "easyJet operates the largest number of flights per year of any UK airline and operates in the busiest airports and most congested airspace in Europe. Our own data shows easyJet’s network punctuality was 76% in 2016 and is at 80% for 2017. We have a continuous focus on punctuality as we know it is important to our customers."
The 5 Least Punctual Airlines:
1. Air Transat – 45% of flights delayed
2. Icelandair – 44%
3. Norwegian – 40%
4. Malaysia – 40%
5. Air Canada – 36%
2. Icelandair – 44%
3. Norwegian – 40%
4. Malaysia – 40%
5. Air Canada – 36%
The 5 Most Punctual Airlines:
1. KLM – 12%
2. Qatar – 14%
3. Iberia – 16%
4. Aer Lingus – 18%
5. Etihad – 18%
2. Qatar – 14%
3. Iberia – 16%
4. Aer Lingus – 18%
5. Etihad – 18%
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