On Time Flights Down 3.5 Percent From January 2004
The nation’s largest airlines experienced a higher rate of
flight delays and cancellations in January 2005 than in either the
previous month or in January of last year, according to the Air
Travel Consumer Report, released today by the U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT).
According to information filed with the Bureau of Transportation
Statistics (BTS), a part of DOT’s Research and Innovative
Technology Administration, the 19 carriers reporting on-time
performance recorded an overall on-time arrival rate of 71.4
percent in January, down from January 2004’s 74.9 percent and
slightly below December 2004’s 71.6 percent rate.
The carriers canceled
4.2 percent of their scheduled flights in January, up from both
January 2004’s 3.0 percent rate and December 2004’s 2.8
percent rate.
The monthly report also includes data on the causes of flight
delays, as well as information on reports of mishandled baggage
filed with the carriers, and consumer service, disability and
discrimination complaints received by DOT’s Aviation Consumer
Protection Division.
Causes of Flight Delays
The carriers filing on-time performance data reported that 8.96
percent of their January flights were delayed by aviation system
delays, compared to 8.60 percent in December 2004; 7.17 percent by
late-arriving aircraft, compared to 8.12 percent in December; 6.52
percent by factors within the airline’s control, such as
maintenance or crew problems, compared to 7.24 percent in December;
1.38 percent by extreme weather, compared to 1.29 percent in
December; and 0.07 percent for security reasons, compared to 0.13
percent in December. Weather is a factor in both the
extreme-weather category and the aviation-system category.
This includes delays
due to the re-routing of flights by DOT’s Federal Aviation
Administration in consultation with the carriers involved. Weather
is also a factor in delays attributed to late-arriving aircraft,
although airlines do not report specific causes in that category.
Airlines first began reporting causes of delays in June 2003.
Data collected by BTS also show the percentage of overall
flights delayed by weather, including those reported in either the
category of extreme weather or included in National Aviation System
delays. In January, 6.14 percent of flights were delayed by
weather, down 0.97 percent from January 2004, when 6.20 percent of
flights were delayed by weather and up 14.34 percent from December
when 5.37 percent of flights were delayed by weather.
Mishandled Baggage
The U.S. carriers reporting flight delay and mishandled baggage
data posted a mishandled baggage rate of 7.88 reports per 1,000
passengers in January, higher than January 2004’s 5.91 rate,
but below December 2004’s 9.11 rate.
Complaints About Airline Service
In January, the
Department received 1,375 complaints from consumers about airline
service, more than double the total of 680 received in January 2004
and 40.9 percent more than the total of 976 received in December
2004.
Complaints About Treatment of Disabled Passengers
The report also contains a tabulation of complaints filed with
DOT in January against specific airlines regarding the treatment of
passengers with disabilities. The Department received a total of 48
disability-related complaints in January, 9.1 percent more than the
44 complaints received in January 2004 and 23.1 percent more than
the total of 39 complaints filed in December 2004.
Complaints About Discrimination
In January, the Department received 13 complaints alleging
discrimination by airlines due to factors other than disability
– such as race, religion, national origin or sex –
compared to 11 complaints in January 2004 and 10 complaints in
December 2004.