US-based airlines better on-time performance in April 2009

United Sates-based airlines improved their on-time and baggage-handling performance in April 2009 as compared to a month earlier.

In all, 19 US-based carriers report every month to the Department of Transportation on-time data and the causes of delays and cancellations for non-stop flights.

These airlines report the causes of delays in broad categories that include ‘extreme weather’ as well as ‘national aviation system delays’ which have been “created by the airlines, industry groups, travel agents and government officials.”

A flight is regarded as on-time if it arrives within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time shown in the airline’s computerised reservations system. Flights that are cancelled or diverted are counted as late.

Data released by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) shows that Hawaiian Airlines, the first and the biggest airline based in the State of Hawaii, ranked first in on-time performance, with a rate of 91.1%.
Hawaiian Airlines was followed by Pinnacle Airlines (at 86.2%) and SkyWest Airlines (at 85.8%).

Comair, based in Kentucky, the United States, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Delta Air Lines, had the worst on-time performance, at 68.6%.

Among the so-called legacy carriers, while Northwest Airlines, based in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States, was on-time the most, Continental Airlines, headquartered in Huston, Texas, the United States, registered the worst on-time performance. (Legacy carriers are airlines which have a large presence in a number of regions before the US aviation industry was deregulated in 1978.)

According to the Air Travel Consumer Report compiled by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics of the United States Department of Transportation, the US-based airlines reported a combined average on-time rate of 79.1% in April 2009, compared to 78.4% in March 2009.

In April 2008, the on-time arrival rate was 77.7%.

The Air Travel Consumer Report said that weather problems were involved in nearly than half of the delays in April 2009, which is a small decrease from March 2009.

The other reasons for delays include congestion as well as issues related to airport operations, maintenance and crew.

Lesser number of planes is flying in 2009 since many airlines have reduced the number of flights in view of the weakening passenger demand.

Reports of mishandled baggage dropped in April 2009 compared to March 2009, and also were lower than in April 2008.

There were, overall, about one-third less complaints from consumers in April 2009 than in April 2008 – but the complaints were more than those reported in March 2009, the US Department of Transportation said. Most of those complaints were about flight cancellations and delays.

The Department of Transportation received 647 complaints about US-based airlines in April 2009, compared to 974 complaints in April 2008. The complaints in March 2009 had come to 586.