PAL leads local airlines in flight punctuality

MANILA, Philippines — Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) led all local operators for flight punctuality in November, as it completed four in every five flights on time ahead of the December holidays.

In Cirium’s monthly report on On-Time Performance for Southeast Asia, PAL secured the third position as the most punctual airline in the region, achieving an on-time rate of 84.27 percent in November.

PAL’s performance allowed it to stay ahead of all other Philippine carriers and maintain its consistent presence on Cirium’s monthly list of the most punctual operators.

Low-cost carrier AirAsia managed to outdo its regional competitors by posting the best on-time rate of 86.68 percent. Flag carrier Vietnam Airlines came second with a punctuality rate of 86.28 percent.

Further down the list, Thai AirAsia and Garuda Indonesia landed fourth and fifth with respective scores of 79.8 percent and 77.73 percent. AirAsia Philippines ended up sixth with 76.08 percent, while Indonesia AirAsia ranked seventh with 75.27 percent.

Singapore Airlines, Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways International rounded up the list of most on-time airlines in Southeast Asia in November.

Regional leader AirAsia has built up its punctuality rate since September, while PAL kept its on-time score above 80 percent during the period.

Nevertheless, Cirium observed a 15 percent surge in flight cancellations in Asia and the Pacific, including Southeast Asia, with the number rising to 36,316 in November from 31,664 in October.

Cirium said every region outside of Asia and the Pacific reduced flight disruptions in November, signaling that airlines are prepared to serve the holiday demand for air travel.

In North America, operators kept their on-time rates up even though they were met with record passenger volumes during Thanksgiving

For PA, this marks the fourth straight month that it was named as one of the best in the region for flight punctuality. The airline missed this recognition for three consecutive months, from May to July, as a result of supply chain disruptions that compelled it to ground multiple aircraft.

At that time, PAL’s punctuality rate was affected by the number of flight cancellations and delays that it had to make in the absence of some of its jets.

For 2024, PAL plans to lessen flight disruptions by procuring new aircraft to expand its fleet.