Cirium reveals 2025 top on-time airlines and airports
Aeromexico maintained a 90.02% on-time performance across 188,859 flights, holding off Saudia (86.53%) and SAS (86.09%) to claim the top spot for the second consecutive year. Only one other airline has achieved back-to-back global wins since Cirium launched its annual On-Time Performance Review in 2009.
Qatar Airways earned the Platinum Award, recognising consistent operational excellence across more than 198,000 flights spanning six continents. The Doha-based carrier’s 84.42% punctuality demonstrates the challenges of maintaining performance at a global scale and sets a benchmark for other network airlines.
Virgin Atlantic captured the inaugural Most Improved award, improving on-time performance by 9.44 percentage points year-on-year — from 74.02% in 2024 to 83.45% in 2025 — reflecting the largest operational gain among global carriers.
Regional highlights
• Middle East & Africa: South Africa’s FlySafair led the region with 91.06% on-time performance. Kirby Gordon, FlySafair chief marketing officer, said: “Maintaining reliable on-time performance requires extraordinary coordination and discipline. This result is a credit to the dedication of our teams. Every flight presents a new set of variables, and sustained performance depends on continuous attention.”
• North America: Delta Air Lines topped the region for the fifth consecutive year (80.90%).
• Europe: Iberia Express retained the lead with 88.94%.
• Latin America: Copa Airlines extended its record streak to 11 wins (90.75%).
• Asia-Pacific: Philippine Airlines claimed the regional title (83.12%).
Airport rankings
• Large Airports: Santiago Arturo Merino Benitez Intl Airport (Chile) led with 87.04% on-time departures.
• Medium Airports: Panama City Tocumen International Airport topped with 93.34%.
• Small Airports: Guayaquil José Joaquín de Olmedo Intl Airport (Ecuador) retained the title with 91.47%.
• Platinum Award: Istanbul Airport received the award for operational complexity, passenger impact during disruptions, and growth trajectory.
Jeremy Bowen, Cirium CEO, said: “Maintaining consistent on-time performance requires sophisticated network planning, operational coordination, and the ability to recover quickly when irregularities occur. These results reflect the operational discipline that defines aviation’s top performers.”
He added: "Qatar Airways’ Platinum win demonstrates how a network carrier can maintain on-time performance across six continents. Similarly, Copa’s 11th Latin American win and Delta’s fifth consecutive North American title reflect sustained operational focus that separates industry leaders from competitors."
Cirium’s On-Time Performance Review, now in its 17th year, analyses data from more than 600 sources, including airlines, airports, global distribution systems, and civil aviation authorities.
Flights arriving within 14 minutes and 59 seconds of scheduled gate time are considered on-time, providing one of the most trusted benchmarks for operational reliability worldwide.