After years of rebuilding its reputation following the post pandemic travel boom, Qantas has reclaimed an impressive title, being named the world’s most punctual major airline for June.
The latest figures from global aviation analytics company OAG show the Flying Kangaroo topped all major airlines worldwide, with 87.16 per cent of its flights arriving within 15 minutes of schedule. The rankings cover airlines operating more than 20,000 flights during the month.
Qantas edged out Colombia’s Avianca (87.00 per cent), while India’s IndiGo, SAS Scandinavian Airlines and Türkiye’s Pegasus Airlines rounded out the global top five. Other airlines serving Australia to make the top 10 included LATAM, Delta Air Lines and China Southern.
The result marks a remarkable turnaround for Australia’s flag carrier. Four years ago, at the height of post-pandemic disruption in 2022, Qantas ranked 106th globally for on-time performance as airlines around the world grappled with staff shortages, operational disruptions and surging travel demand following the pandemic.
According to OAG, a flight is considered on time if it arrives at the gate within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival. Qantas maintained one of the lowest cancellation rates among the world’s largest airlines during the month. It’s worth noting the ranking reflects a single month of data, and Qantas’ position has moved around from month to month over the past year — it placed second in April and third in January, for instance — so June’s result, while a strong showing, isn’t necessarily indicative of a settled trend.
Qantas Domestic CEO Markus Svensson credited the result to the efforts of staff across the airline.
“We know how much our customers value getting to their destination safely and on time. Across our teams, there has been a huge amount of work to improve our reliability,” Svensson said. “These results reflect the hard work of thousands of people across our operation who show up every day to keep our customers moving. While we know there’s always more to do and not every customer journey is seamless, improving reliability remains a key focus for us. We’re continuing to invest in initiatives that help more of our customers get away on time and deliver a better experience every time they fly with us.”
The June result is also Qantas’ best monthly punctuality performance since 2017 and continues a strong run, with the airline ranking among the world’s three most punctual major carriers for five of the past six months.
While operational performance has improved dramatically, Qantas continues to face challenges elsewhere, including higher fuel costs and ongoing flight rerouting around conflict zones in the Middle East, which have affected some of its long haul services to Europe.
For travel advisors, the ranking provides another selling point for clients where reliability is a priority, particularly on tight domestic connections and long haul itineraries where on time arrivals can make all the difference.
