Over the past five years, Delta Airlines has made a commitment to improving its on time record. In 2010, Delta was ranked 15th out of 18 on the list of on-time US carriers. Now, Delta is ranked 3rd on the list of US carriers, behind Hawaiian Airlines and Alaskan Airlines.
Delta is presenting a new program to corporate clients that would award travel credits if the airlines falls behind its biggest competitors United Airlines and American Airlines in on-time arrivals and flight completion. If Delta fell behind its competitors, corporate clients who are participating would receive credits at the end of the year based on the numbers of delays and cancellations.
While it seems as if the airlines is putting its money where its mouth is to impress corporate clients, it seems unlikely Delta would actually end up paying out. Delta would have to land behind both United and American, not one or the other. You can see based on the first quarter of the year, Delta is making a pretty safe bet it will continue to beat United and American in on-time arrivals. Flights that arrive within 15 minutes of the scheduled time are considered “on-time”. It is also important to note the on-time ranking does not include Delta’s regional carriers as a part of Delta’s statistics.
First Quarter of 2015 On-Time Arrivals Ranking:
1. Hawaiian Airlines, 87 %
2. Alaska Airlines, 86%
3. Delta Air Lines, 84%
4. SkyWest, 82%
5. Southwest Airlines, 80%
6. US Airways, 79%
7. Virgin America, 79%
8. United Airlines, 78%
9. ExpressJet, 76.%
10. American Airlines, 75%
It will be interesting to see if Delta gains a larger share of corporate travel accounts as a result of this offer and if Delta will be able to maintains it’s high ranking for on time arrivals.
Business Travel Life
Business Travel Life is an online resource supporting the road warrior lifestyle. We give business travelers the tools they need to maintain their wellness and productivity when traveling. The topics we cover include business travel tips, travel workouts, healthy travel hacks, travel products, general travel tips, and industry trends. Our goal is to make business travel a healthier experience – and to make healthy travel practices more accessible to all road warriors.
