Global air travel experienced a challenging June, marked by a significant increase in flight cancellations, according to the latest data from Cirium. Overall, flight cancellations rose by 20% compared to May, with geopolitical tensions in the Middle East leading to an almost 200% surge in regional flight disruptions.
Major international carriers, including Qatar Airways, Emirates, Lufthansa, Air France, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines, were significantly impacted, experiencing widespread cancellations and rerouting thousands of flights initially bound for key hubs like Dubai and Doha.
Despite these global headwinds, several airlines demonstrated exceptional operational resilience, achieving impressive on-time performance (OTP) in June:
June’s Top Performers Across Key Categories:
- Global Leader: Saudia Airlines emerged as the new global leader, showcasing remarkable operational efficiency with an OTP of 91.33%. Azul also returned to the top ranks, securing third place globally with an OTP of 86.33%.
- North America: Air Canada maintained its strong position as the regional leader, showing significant improvement from its June 2024 OTP. Meanwhile, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and United Airlines faced extensive cancellations and delays due to a combination of adverse weather and the escalating Middle East conflict.
- Asia-Pacific: Thai AirAsia led the region with an OTP of 87.71%. JAL re-entered the Top 5, securing fourth place with an OTP of 83.60%.
- Europe: Icelandair reclaimed the top spot in Europe with an OTP of 85.77%. Turkish Airlines and Vueling made strong re-entries into the top ranks, achieving OTPs of 83.78% and 81.76% respectively.
- Latin America: Gol claimed the top spot in the region, while Aerolineas Argentinas returned to the top ranks, securing fifth place.
- Middle East & Africa: Flyadeal became the new regional leader, demonstrating an impressive improvement of more than 3 points in its OTP.
Leading Airports by On-Time Performance:
- Large Airports: King Khalid International Airport led this category with an outstanding OTP of 90.41%.
- Medium Airports: Itami International Airport became the new frontrunner for medium-sized airports.
- Small Airports: Jose Joaquin de Olmedo International Airport took the lead in the small airports category.
Cirium noted that June presented a complex operational landscape for the aviation industry, primarily driven by heightened geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. “Despite these significant challenges, the data highlights the remarkable efforts of airlines and airports worldwide to maintain operational integrity and deliver for passengers. Saudia Airlines’ emergence as a global leader in on-time performance is particularly noteworthy, underscoring their commitment to efficiency even amidst adversity.”
