Airline On-Time Performance Improves in 2008
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DOT 16-09
Bill Mosley
202-366-4570 |
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Monday, February 9, 2009 - The on-time performance
of the nation’s largest airlines improved in 2008 compared to the previous year,
according to the Air Travel Consumer Report released today by the U.S.
Department of Transportation (DOT).
According to information filed with
the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), a part of DOT’s Research and
Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), the 19 carriers reporting on-time
performance recorded an overall on-time arrival rate of 76.0 percent for
January through December 2008, up from 2007’s 73.4 percent rate. During December 2008, the carriers posted an
on-time performance rate of 65.3 percent, up from December 2007’s 64.3 percent
but down from November 2008’s 83.3 percent.
The monthly report also includes data
on lengthy tarmac delays, flight cancellations and the causes of flight delays
by the reporting carriers, as well as information on reports of mishandled
baggage filed with the carriers, airline bumping, and consumer service,
disability and discrimination complaints received by DOT’s Aviation Consumer
Protection Division. This report also includes reports of
incidents involving pets traveling by air, as required to be filed by
U.S. carriers.
Cancellations
The consumer report includes BTS data on the number of
domestic flights canceled by the reporting carriers. In December, the
carriers canceled 3.3 percent of their scheduled domestic flights, down from
the 3.5 percent cancellation rate of December 2007 but higher than the 0.8
percent rate posted in November 2008.
Tarmac Delays
In December, the carriers filing
on-time performance data reported that .0003 percent of their scheduled flights
had tarmac delays of three hours or more, up from .00002 percent in November. BTS is reviewing other parts of the tarmac
data reported by carriers for October through December, the first three months
carriers have reported this data. Data
will be released when the review is completed.
Causes of Flight Delays
In December, the carriers filing on-time
performance data reported that 10.57 percent of their flights were delayed by
aviation system delays, compared to 6.56 percent in November; 11.13 percent by
late-arriving aircraft, compared to 4.79 percent in November; 7.65 percent by
factors within the airline’s control, such as maintenance or crew problems, compared
to 3.89 percent in November; 1.53 percent by extreme weather, compared to 0.37
percent in November; and 0.07 percent for security reasons, compared to 0.02
percent in November. Weather is a factor
in both the extreme-weather category and the aviation-system category. This includes
delays due to the re-routing of flights by DOT’s Federal Aviation
Administration in consultation with the carriers involved. Weather is also a factor in delays attributed
to late-arriving aircraft, although airlines do not report specific causes in
that category.
Data collected by BTS also shows
the percentage of late flights delayed by weather, including those reported in
either the category of extreme weather or included in National Aviation System
delays. In December, 45.36 percent of late flights were delayed by weather, up
4.18 percent from December 2007, when 43.54 percent of late flights were
delayed by weather, and up 7.79 percent from November when 42.08 percent of
late flights were delayed by weather.
Detailed information on flight
delays and their causes is available on the BTS site on the World Wide Web at http://www.bts.gov.
Mishandled Baggage
The U.S. carriers
reporting flight delays and mishandled baggage data posted a mishandled baggage
rate of 6.96 reports per 1,000 passengers in December, an improvement over
December 2007’s rate of 9.05 but higher than November 2008’s 3.75 rate. For all of last year, the carriers posted a
mishandled baggage rate of 5.26 per 1,000 passengers, an improvement over
2007’s rate of 7.05.
Bumping
The report also includes airline reports of
involuntary denied boarding, or bumping, for 2008 and the fourth quarter of
last year. In 2008, the U.S. carriers that report on-time performance, mishandled baggage data and bumping totals
had a bumping rate of 1.10 per 10,000 passengers, down from the 1.12 rate for
2007. For the fourth quarter of 2008,
the carriers recorded a bumping rate of 1.10 per 10,000 passengers, up from the
0.83 rate recorded during the fourth quarter of 2007.
Incidents Involving Pets
In December, carriers reported one incident
involving pets while traveling by air, compared to six incidents in November. December’s incident involved the death of a
pet.
Complaints
About Airline Service
In December, the Department received 700
complaints about airline service from consumers, down 17.8 percent from the 852
complaints filed in December 2007 but 31.6 percent more than the total of 532
received in November 2008. For all of
last year, the Department received 10,643 air service complaints, 19.2 percent
fewer than the 13,180 complaints filed in 2007.
Complaints About Treatment of Disabled
Passengers
The report also
contains a tabulation of complaints filed with DOT against airlines regarding
the treatment of passengers with disabilities. The Department received a total of 33 disability-related complaints in December,
65.0 percent more than the 20 complaints received in December 2007 and 17.9 percent
more than the total of 28 filed in November 2008. For all of last year, the Department received
474 disability-related complaints, down 2.9 percent from the total of 488
received in 2007.
Complaints
About Discrimination
In December,
the Department received seven complaints alleging discrimination by airlines
due to factors other than disability – such as race, religion, national origin
or sex – up from the two complaints recorded in December 2007 and equal to the
total of seven filed in November 2008. For all of last year, the Department received 115 discrimination
complaints, up 16.2 percent from the total of 99 filed in 2007.
Consumers may
file their complaints in writing with the Aviation Consumer Protection
Division, U.S. Department of Transportation, C-75, W96-432, 1200
New Jersey Ave. SE, Washington, DC
20590; by voice mail at (202)
366-2220 or by TTY at (202) 366-0511; or on the web at http://airconsumer.dot.gov.
Consumers who
want on-time performance data for specific flights should call their airline’s reservation
number or their travel agent. This
information is available on the computerized reservation systems used by these
agents.
The Air Travel
Consumer Report can be found on DOT’s World Wide Web site at http://airconsumer.dot.gov. It is available in “pdf” and Microsoft Word
format.
Air Travel Consumer Report December 2008
Key On-Time Performance and Flight Cancellation Statistics
Based on Data Filed with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics by the 19 Reporting Carriers
Overall
65.3 percent on-time arrivals
Highest On-Time
Arrival Rates
1. Hawaiian
Airlines – 79.6 percent
2. US
Airways – 72.1 percent
3. American
Airlines – 69.9 percent
Lowest On-Time
Arrival Rates
1. Comair
– 55.1 percent
2. Alaska
Airlines – 58.4 percent
3. American
Eagle Airlines – 59.3 percent
Most Frequently
Delayed Flights
1. SkyWest Airlines flight 4669 from Atlanta
to San Antonio, TX
– late 94.12 percent of the time
2. American Eagle Airlines flight 4458 from Detroit
to Chicago O’Hare – late 93.33 percent of the time
2. Comair flight 6475 from Milwaukee
to Atlanta – late 93.33 percent of
the time
2. ExpressJet Airlines flight 2019 from Hartford,
CT/Springfield,
MA to Newark,
NJ – late 93.33 percent of the time
2. Northwest Airlines flight 599 from
Minneapolis/St. Paul to Portland, OR
– late 93.33 percent of the time
2. Northwest Airlines flight 361 from
Minneapolis/St. Paul to San Francisco
– late 93.33 percent of the time
2. Northwest Airlines flight 215 Detroit
to Seattle – late 93.33 percent of
the time
2. Northwest Airlines flight 163 from
Minneapolis/St. Paul to Seattle– late 93.33 percent of the time
Flights with Longest Tarmac
Delays
1. ExpressJet
Airlines flight 2418 from Houston
to Monroe, LA,
12/10/08 – delayed on
tarmac 429 minutes
2. Continental
Airlines flight 1010 from Houston
to Newark, NJ,
12/10/08 – delayed on
tarmac 409 minutes
3. ExpressJet
Airlines flight 2710 from Houston
to Baton Rouge, LA,
12/10/08 – delayed on
tarmac 393 minutes
4. Continental
Airlines flight 616 from Houston
to Minneapolis/St. Paul, 12/10/08
– delayed on tarmac 386 minutes
5. Continental
Airlines flight 644 from Houston
to Cleveland, 12/10/08 – delayed on tarmac
376 minutes
Highest Rates of
Canceled Flights
1. American
Eagle Airlines – 6.7 percent
2. Comair – 6.3 percent
3. Pinnacle
Airlines – 5.8 percent
Lowest Rates of Canceled Flights
1. Frontier
Airlines – 1.0 percent
2. AirTran
Airways – 1.4 percent
3. Northwest
Airlines – 1.6 percent
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