Airlines face delays in June, but fewer cancellations
Qantas stays at the top of its game, but Sydney Airport remains a sore spot.
The latest domestic airline time performance figures from the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) show continuing improvements among Australian airlines, compared to the long-term average and figures from the previous month.
Overall, Australia's airlines continue to perform well, with an 82.8% monthly average for on-time arrivals and an 84.2% monthly average for on-time departures, both coming in above the long-term average. The overall rate of cancellations among all airlines improved significantly in June compared to previous months, putting it back at the long-term average of 1.4%.
As with the month before, regional flights appear to be having trouble finding spots at Sydney Airport, with June's least-punctual routes country-wide being Albury-Sydney, where only 64.8% of flights arrived on time, and Townsville-Sydney, where only 61.5% of flights departed on time. In April, it was Launceston-Sydney flights that were the least punctual, with only 55.3% of flights departing on time and only 60% arriving on time.
Premium carrier Qantas continues to have the highest percentage of on-time arrivals and departures among the major domestic airlines and also saw improvements over the last month, despite the slipping performance of its regional QantasLink flights.
Qantas Group's budget arm Jetstar also seemed to make up for lost time more efficiently in June, with 80.7% of flights arriving on time (compared to 77.6% in the previous month) and 77.2% of flights departing on time (compared to 73.5% in the previous month).
By contrast, Tigerair saw fewer on-time arrivals and departures, with 73.2% of flights arriving on time and 74.1% of flights departing on time in June, compared to 78.1% and 77.4% respectively the previous month. Tigerair's punctuality outperformed Jetstar's in April but the roles reversed in June.
| Airline | On-time arrivals | On-time departures | Cancellations |
|---|---|---|---|
| All Airlines | 82.8% | 84.2% | 1.4% |
| Jetstar | 80.7% | 77.2% | 0.7% |
| Qantas | 89.5% | 90.5% | 0.7% |
| QantasLink | 86.5% | 86.4% | 2.6% |
| Regional Express | 81.3% | 83.8% | 1.7% |
| Tigerair Australia | 73.2% | 74.1% | 2.1% |
| Virgin Australia | 88.2% | 88.2% | 1.1% |
| Virgin Australia Regional Airlines | 87.7% | 89.1% | 0.4% |
QantasLink saw the highest percentage of cancellations in June at 2.6%, but this was still a significant improvement from the previous month, which saw a 3.9% cancellation rate from the regional carrier.
The most efficient routes in the country in June were Hamilton Island-Brisbane, with on-time arrivals at 97%, and Alice Springs-Darwin, with on-time departures at 97.2%.
Overall, Australia's airlines are continuing to improve in the long term, though each month can vary a lot in terms of flight times, delays and prices. Fortune favours the flexible traveller, so it's worth investigating to find the best day and time to fly.
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