Qantas Tops On-Time Performance Charts for Fifth Consecutive Year

Qantas has once again been recognized as Australia’s most punctual major domestic airline, achieving the highest on-time performance for the fifth consecutive year. According to the latest monthly Government data released by the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE), 76.1% of Qantas flights (Qantas and QantasLink combined) departed on time in 2024, outperforming its major domestic competitor at 73.7%.

Consistent Improvement in Operational Performance

This result improves from 2023 (74.1%) and 2022 (69.2%), solidifying Qantas’ reputation for reliability and punctuality. The airline maintained a higher rate of on-time flights compared to its major competitor for 10 out of 12 months in 2024. Qantas’ cancellation rate for the year stood at 3.2%, down slightly from 3.5% in 2023.

Despite facing one of the busiest festive seasons on record, Qantas achieved a departure on-time performance of 73.1% in December, an improvement from the previous month and December 2023. The airline’s cancellation rate for December was 2.7%, down from 3.4% in November.

Commitment to Punctuality

Qantas Domestic CEO Markus Svensson expressed his pride in the airline’s continuous improvement: “We know just how important it is for our customers to get to their destination on time and we’ve seen really positive improvements off the back of the work our teams have been doing over the past twelve months. We are pleased that we continued to see year-on-year improvement in our operational performance but there is still more work to do as it’s still not back at the levels that we are targeting.”

Investment in Reliability

Svensson highlighted Qantas’ investment in areas such as engineering and efficient boarding processes to further improve reliability. “We are investing a lot in areas like engineering and efficient boarding processes to further improve our reliability and are working with the broader aviation sector on how we can lift the performance of the industry as a whole,” he said.

Accurate Comparison of Punctuality

The Qantas network, which combines Qantas and QantasLink data, provides customers with the most accurate comparison of punctuality between airlines. In 2024, QantasLink operated around 60% of domestic flights on Qantas’ network, including many routes where QantasLink operates the vast majority of flights for Qantas, such as Sydney-Canberra and Melbourne-Canberra.

By including all QantasLink flights, the airline ensures an accurate representation of its overall performance and a fair comparison with other major airline groups.

Looking Ahead

As Qantas continues to focus on improving its operational performance and ensuring customer satisfaction, travellers can look forward to more reliable and punctual flights. The airline’s commitment to investing in key areas and working with the broader aviation sector will undoubtedly contribute to lifting the industry’s performance.

For more information and to book your next flight with Australia’s most punctual major domestic airline, visit Qantas.