The overall punctuality of airlines on Australian routes has declined in the past two years according to a report by the Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE).
Eight airlines flying 49 different Australian routes were covered in the report including Virgin Blue, Qantas, Tiger Airways and Jetstar Airlines.
On-time results for arrivals were 79 per cent overall for 2007-08, down from 86 per cent over the previous 12 months.
The report also noted a steady increase in flight cancellations since December 2006.
Cancellations were up from 0.8 per cent in 2006- 07 to 1.7 per cent in 2007-08.
MacAir had the highest number of flight cancellations, followed by Qantas.
Across all airlines the Melbourne to Sydney route had the highest number of flights cancelled.
The airline that topped the list for being on time was Tiger Airways, followed by MacAir and QantasLink. Jetstar came in last
The BITRE report is published annually to allow travellers to make an informed decision when planning their air travel in Australia.
The airlines and routes analysed carried 95 per cent of Australian domestic air passengers in 2007-08.
On-time performance for carriers on Australian air routes
| Carrier |
Arrivals on time |
| 1. Tiger Airways |
81.3% |
| 2. MacAir |
80.8% |
| 3. QantasLink |
80.7% |
| 4. Skywest |
80% |
| 5. Qantas |
79.6% |
| 6. Regional Express |
78.1% |
| 7. Virgin Blue |
77.6% |
| 8. Jetstar |
76.3% |
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