(Image source from: x.com/IndiGo6E)

The skies have more planes flying than ever before. Every flight that takes off or lands has many stories to tell. One thing that all travelers appreciate is flights leaving and arriving on time, which has become even more important after the IndiGo incident. Daily, flights leave around the world every hour while dealing with issues like airspace limits, staff shortages, and other aviation hurdles. In this context, Cirium, a company that analyzes aviation data, has published its 2025 On-Time Performance Review, which lists the most punctual airlines and airports globally. If you are curious about the definition, the report states that an 'On-Time Arrival' means a passenger flight arrives at the gate within 15 minutes of when it was supposed to. This data is used to rank airlines.

Similarly, an 'On-Time Departure' is defined as a passenger flight leaving the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled time, and this is how airports are ranked. Interestingly, one Indian airline has made it onto this list, which may surprise you. First, let’s look at which airlines are the most punctual.

Most Punctual Airlines in the World:

Qatar Airways was awarded the Platinum Winner, achieving 84.42 percent on-time performance from 198,303 flights, showing improvement from its 2024 results.

Aeromexico kept its title as the world’s Most Punctual Global Airline for the second year in a row, reaching 90.02 percent punctuality from 188,859 flights.

Philippine Airlines topped the Asia-Pacific region with 83.12 percent punctuality from 116,268 flights.

In North America, Delta Air Lines led with an 80.9 percent on-time record from over 1.8 million flights.

Iberia Express was named the most punctual airline in Europe for the third consecutive year, achieving 88.94 percent on-time performance from 37,119 flights.

In Latin America, Copa Airlines was the leader with 90.75 percent punctuality over 133,748 flights.

FlySafair stood out as the most punctual airline in the Middle East and Africa, hitting 91.06 percent on-time performance from 62,805 flights.

Virgin Atlantic was recognized as the Most Improved Airline of 2025, raising its on-time performance from 74.01 percent in 2023 to 83.45 percent.

Additionally, the yearly list includes a regional ranking of the top 10 airlines. In the Asia-Pacific Airlines Report, the Indian airline that made it is IndiGo.

IndiGo ranked sixth on the list. The data shows that the airline achieved a 78.12 percent rate of flights arriving on time out of a total of 802,418 flights in 2025. In December 2025, many passengers were left stranded at airports due to mass flight cancellations caused by problems within IndiGo. This operational issue caused some individuals to miss important occasions such as weddings, business meetings, and planned bachelorette trips among other events. Despite this chaos, the report also recognizes it. It mentions that “IndiGo performed well for most of the year, reaching on-time performance rates of 80 percent or higher from June to October before a decline in November and December. The decline was mainly due to a change in regulations regarding flight crew duties in early December, which resulted in significant delays and cancellations over multiple days, eventually leading the airline to cancel all flights from Delhi to reorganize its operations. ” Now, regarding the airports, here are those that gained recognition for their timeliness in spite of the challenges in aviation.

Istanbul Airport received Cirium's Airport Platinum Award, marking a significant year in its development. In April 2025, it became the first airport in Europe to operate with three independent parallel runways. Just three months later, on July 2, the airport set a European record by managing 81 departures within a single hour. Santiago's Arturo Merino Bentez International Airport led the Large Airport category with an on-time departure rate of 87.04 percent. Panama's Tocumen International Airport was at the top of the Medium Airport category with an impressive 93.34 percent punctuality. Lastly, Ecuador's Guayaquil Jos Joaqun de Olmedo International Airport won the Small Airport category for the second year in a row, achieving 91.47 percent on-time departures.