Arriving on time is important for all sorts of reasons: making a connection; attending a big meeting; or even just starting your vacation on the right foot. And when it comes to on-time arrivals, not all airlines are created equal. Sure, sometimes it depends what airports they fly into, regulars at LaGuardia, JFK, and Newark have to deal with a lot more congestion than airlines flying into say Charleston, South Carolina. But sometimes the arrival record is also a function of the airline itself.
Listed below are the top 10 airlines for arriving on-time with the highest customer satisfaction rating.
#10 Delta
On-time performance: 76.9%
Though most airlines increased their on-time performance, Delta’s dropped ever so slightly, from 77.3%. Unfortunately, that means slipping from the #7 spot, though the airline still remains in the top 10.
#9 Alaska
On-time performance: 77.6%
There wasn’t much movement for Alaska, which gained 1 percentage point in on-time arrivals from 2010 but slipped from #8.
#8 AirTran
On-time performance: 78.4%
AirTran’s jump of 2 percentage points from 2010 was enough to help it snag the #8 spot from Alaska.
#7 Northwest
On-time performance: 79.6%
Northwest made a big move this year; its improvement of 6 percentage points from 2010 meant a jump of 5 spots in the rankings and a solid spot in the top 10.
#6 Frontier
On-time performance: 80%
Frontier was booted out of the top 5 this year, despite an increase in on-time performance from 78%
#5 US Airways
On-time performance: 80.4%
Though US Airways slipped less than 2 percentage points from 2010, the surge from a couple regional carriers cost the airline its #3 spot.
#4 SkyWest
On-time performance: 81.4%
This regional carrier—which is the primary United Express carrier along the West Coast, as well as a Delta Connection and Midwest Connect carrier—increased its 2010 performance (78%) and its ranking (#5).
#3 Southwest
On-time performance: 83%
While Southwest’s performance increased this year (it was 80% in 2010), that wasn’t quite enough to hold onto its #2 ranking.
#2 Pinnacle
On-time performance: 83.4%
Pinnacle—which operates flights for Northwest Airline and Delta Connection—didn’t crack the top 5 in 2010 (it was #6 with 77.4%), but this year flew to the #2 spot.
#1 Hawaiian
On-time performance: 89.5%
Once again, Hawaiian outperformed all other carriers. Should airline executives be worried that the on-time percentage dropped from 92% last year? Probably not—it’s still ahead by a healthy margin.