Where Does Your Airline Rank in Arriving on Time?

As a pilot, you take pride in flying across the great blue sky. And even though your aerial adventures never seem to be on-time, your dedication and perseverance does not go unnoticed.

All airplane arrival times are recorded throughout the year then compared. Naturally, airline companies with better year-to-date stats are looked at favorably by the public. Which can lead to more flights being booked (and more profits generated).

In this article, we reveal which group of pilots made their company number one this year. But before we announce this year’s top airline, let’s go over the factors that delay flights and the effects those inconveniences have on a pilots day.

Most Delay Factors

For the most part, delayed flights have nothing to do with pilots. Noteworthy exceptions include when pilots are late or unable to come in. Beyond those, however, most delays are external. Common issues typically revolve around the airport, other flights, and the airplane itself.

The Transportation Department uses a 14-minute window to determine delays. And even if you are on-time, the flight your cargo or passengers are arriving on may not be.

Loading times, weather changes, congested airports, and swamped air traffic control can make leaving the airport on-time impossible some days.

Of course, most airlines try to compensate for this during scheduling. Especially if a flight is landing at an airport infamously known to have delays. In addition to this tactic, responsible airlines take into consideration the fact that all pilots are human and thus prone to getting sick or experiencing an emergency from time to time.

To address this issue, airlines such as Spirit, have reserve pilots waiting in the wings. These saviors step in at a moment’s notice to ensure flights are able to take off as close to on-time as feasibly possible.

Which definitely matters considering what delay’s do to pilots.

FAA Pilot Fatigue Regulations (How Delays Affect Pilots)

Pilot fatigue is a big deal. And all of these mini delays can be nothing shy of painful at the end of a long flight. Although FAA regulations mandate an 8-hour rest period within 24-hours, this is a rotating window. Which means if you did not get a full 8 hours of rest the night before, prepare to make up that lost time after the next flight.

Nevertheless, the extra hours do add up. For those who have a guaranteed number of hours anyway. Bear in mind, putting in more hours than required can lead to more pay. But it’s probably not worth the headaceh.

The Top Airlines In Arrival Times

Now that we have reviewed delay factors and how they affect pilots, let’s get to the big reveal.

According to the Transportation Department, the company with the most on-time arrivals throughout the year was Hawaiian Airlines. Despite all the odds, the pilots flying for Hawaiian Airlines managed to be on-time in almost 88% of flights. Way to go!

Here’s the rest of the list:

Hawaiian Airlines

1. Alaska Airlines
2. Delta
3. Spirit
4. Southwest
5. United
6. American
7. 8 Allegiant
8. JetBlue
9. Frontier