The Hungarian carrier – which operates short-haul flights from 10 UK airports, including Belfast International, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Gatwick and Luton – was found to have flights on average 14 minutes and 24 seconds behind schedule in 2021, months before the final voyage chaos reigned. Civil Aviation Authority data analyzed by PA media identified Tui Airways as the second worst for punctuality on flights departing from the UK, followed by British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Loganair. Low-cost airlines easyJet and Ryanair – two of the UK’s most booked airlines – emerged as the most accurate of their peers. Only Irish carrier Aer Lingus performed better, with a typical delay of three minutes and 12 seconds. Overall, flight punctuality was better in 2021 than before the Covid pandemic due to travel restrictions that reduced the number of flights. However, the situation has worsened this year, with staff shortages leaving airports and airlines struggling to keep up with a recovery in travel following the lifting of Covid restrictions. Hiring problems have led to the cancellation of tens of thousands of flights. Consumer champions are calling for a U-turn on Government plans to overhaul passenger compensation packages for UK flights. “While these findings are worrying, the reality has actually been much worse for many travelers this summer,” said Guy Hobbs, editor of consumer magazine Which? Journey. “Holidaymakers have faced a barrage of upheaval in recent months and these latest figures only serve to underline the need for urgent reform of the travel industry. “The government must abandon plans to cut passenger compensation for delayed and canceled domestic flights,” Hobbs said. The Department for Transport (DfT) announced in January that it is considering revising the rules on air passenger rights for flights within the UK as part of post-Brexit reforms. Currently, someone on a domestic flight from Edinburgh to London is entitled to claim £220 when their flight is delayed by three hours, unless it was caused by extraordinary circumstances such as bad weather. The compensation payable is fixed and not linked to the price paid by the passenger. However, under the proposed changes, the amount would be linked to the fare, meaning a passenger who had paid £50 for a domestic flight would get £12.50 back after a 90-minute delay. The Department for Transport did not comment on the review of the compensation system, but said it was up to the travel sector to ensure passengers “could get away with the summer holidays they deserve”. Subscribe to Business Today Get ready for the business day – we’ll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. The spokesman said the government had made efforts to support the industry, including through accelerated audits that helped speed up hiring. “These measures are working and flight cancellations have recently fallen to 2019 levels following the changes, which provide passengers with greater certainty,” they said. Wizz Air has been contacted for comment.
Average flight delays from UK airports in 2021
1 Wizz Air: 14 minutes and 24 seconds2 Tui Airways: 13 minutes and 18 seconds3 British Airways: 12 minutes and 42 seconds4 Virgin Atlantic: 12 minutes5 Loganair: 11 minutes and 30 seconds6 Air France: 11 minutes and 12 seconds7 minutes Lufthansa: : eight minutes and 42 seconds9 Eastern Airways: seven minutes and 48 seconds10 Jet2.com: seven minutes and 42 seconds11 American Airlines: seven minutes12 Ryanair: six minutes and six seconds13 EasyJet: four minutes and 36 seconds14 Aer Lingus: three minutes and 12 seconds
