World's most punctual airport: Washington Dulles tops the list in February 2024

In 2023, overseas flights from Washington Dulles airport increased by 26.9 percent, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA). (Image credit: Joe Ravi via Wikimedia Commons 3.0)

Washington Dulles in Northern Virginia, US, was the world's most punctual airport in February, with an on-time departure rate of 89.95 percent. It was followed by Vienna International Airport (VIE), with an average departure performance of 89.39 percent. Rounding out the top three was Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), which had a successful and timely departure rate of 89.04 percent.

The top five also had Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX), which recorded timely departures at 88.36 percent, and Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport (ATH) at 88.12 percent.

Aeromexico led the way for airlines with 90.66 percent on-time arrivals, followed by Delta and Iberia in the top three in the list of global airlines, according to Cirium Aviation Analytics’ monthly on-time performance (OTP) report for airports and airlines.

In 2023, overseas flights from Washington Dulles airport increased by 26.9 percent, according to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA) released passenger traffic numbers for 2023. The airport’s previous record for international passengers was set in 2019, with 8.4 million travellers. In 2023, the increased passenger traffic growth came mainly from five airlines adding services to IAD: ITA Airways, Norse Atlantic, WestJet, Air China, and PLAY.

Indian airports that have taken the top spots in the ‘On-Time Performance Monthly Report’, published by data analytics firm Cirium, include Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) and Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Airport. The Hyderabad and Bengaluru airports were second and third in the list, respectively, in 2023. Arrivals and departures are clocked as punctual if they occur within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.