Air travel in the U.S. last year was defined by chaotic delays and cancellations during the 43-day government shutdown. New global punctuality rankings from aviation analytics firm Cirium show just how dire delays were in 2025.
Cirium analyzes flight data from more than 600 sources including airlines, airports, global distribution systems, and civil aviation authorities. A flight is considered on time if it lands within 15 minutes of its scheduled gate arrival time.
Aeromexico earned the top spot for global airlines for the second year in a row with 90.02% of its flights arriving on time, improving by over 3% from the previous year. The win comes after the airline debuted at $2.8 billion on the NYSE last year and raised $222.8 million.
“Maintaining consistent on-time performance requires sophisticated network planning, operational coordination, and the ability to recover quickly when irregularities occur,” Cirium CEO Jeremy Bowen said in a statement. “These results reflect the operational discipline that defines aviation’s top performers.”
Saudia followed in second with 85.63% on-time, and the Scandinavian airline SAS claimed third with 86.09%.
Delta is the only American company to make the top 10 and has the highest rating of all American airlines. “Delta’s fifth consecutive North American win reflects sustained operational focus that separates industry leaders from competitors,” Bowen said.
The airline — which flies more than three times the number of flights as any other airline in the top 10 — sank in the rankings after placing third last year.
Timeliness improvements from Azul Brazilian Airlines, Spain’s Iberia, and Qatar Airways helped raise their ratings and beat out the Atlanta-based airline.
Here’s how the most on-time airlines placed, according to Cirium’s analysis.
Top 10 Most On-Time Global Airlines
Aeromexico: 90.02% on-time arrivals
Saudia: 86.53%
Scandinavian Airlines: 86.09%
Azul Brazilian Airlines: 85.18%
Qatar Airways: 84.42%
Iberia: 83.52%
LATAM Airlines: 82.40%
Avianca: 81.73%
Turkish Airlines: 81.41%
Delta Air Lines: 80.90%
