Iberia and Iberia Express named as Europe’s most punctual airlines in 2024

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Spanish carriers Iberia and Iberia Express have been named the most punctual airlines in Europe in 2024, taking the two highest rankings in an industrywide survey published for the year.

According to data analytics organization, Cirium, Iberia Express was the most punctual airline in Europe in 2024 with an arrival punctuality rate of 84.69%, which also made it the most punctual low-cost airline in the world in 2024. According to Cirium’s On-Time Performance Report for 2024, Iberia was the second most punctual airline in Europe, with a total of 183,268 flights and 81.58% of flights arriving on time at their destinations. This made the carrier the world’s eighth most punctual carrier overall.

According to a statement issued by Iberia, these figures are “particularly noteworthy given the complex challenges faced by aviation this year, such as regulations in European airspace, congestion at some of the airports served by both airlines, labor disputes at some air traffic control centers and the global shortage of spare parts.”

“Punctuality is, without a doubt, what our customers demand the most, and, because of this, we devote all our efforts to try to maintain the high standards achieved in recent years,” said  Marco Sansavini, President of Iberia. “We are very pleased with this recognition by Cirium, although our objective is to continue improving. It has been a complex year, full of disruptions, which prevented us from reaching the quality standards that an airline like ours is committed to offering its customers.”

“In 2025, we are determined to make even greater efforts, to review each of our processes and change whatever is necessary to achieve excellence in punctuality. This is the wish of every one of Iberia’s 10,000 employees, pilots, cabin crew, maintenance technicians, engineers, and office staff, as well as our colleagues at the airport, now part of South, IAG’s handling company,” Sansavini added. 

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“This achievement by the airline makes us especially proud, because, on the one hand, it allows us to offer a good service to our customers and, on the other, it showcases the huge level of commitment of the entire Iberia Express team,” said Carlos Gómez, CEO of Iberia Express.

“I want to say thank you to the crews and the teams directly involved in operations, as well as to all the people at Iberia Express and the companies that have supported us throughout 2024 to achieve this great milestone. We are operating more and more flights, but always trying to maintain a high level of consistency and high standards of safety, efficiency, and operational excellence to offer the best possible experience to our customers.”

“At Iberia Express, we face important challenges in the short, medium, and long term, which we can only achieve by all rowing together in the same direction, which will surely allow us to maintain these excellent figures achieved in 2024,” added Gómez.  

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According to the IAG-owned airline group, collectively, Iberia and Iberia Express have “always maintained high standards of operational excellence that have allowed them to build a successful track record.”

Iberia has been among the most punctual airlines in Europe and in the top 10 worldwide for the last nine years. Iberia Express, meanwhile, was the most punctual low-cost airline in the world for five consecutive years, between 2014 and 2018, plus the most punctual low-cost airline in Europe in 2019 and 2022, and the most punctual airline in Europe in 2023. In the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands, two of the most important markets for Iberia Express, departure punctuality has been above 90% in both archipelagos.

In its reportCirium congratulated Iberia Express and highlighted the fact that “it continues to be one of the most reliable airlines in Europe. This achievement underlines Iberia Express’ dedication to punctuality and reflects its spirit of operational excellence. This airline continues to demonstrate that affordability can coexist with punctuality. As a leader in European aviation, Iberia Express combines high expectations with exceptional service, positioning itself as a benchmark in the sector.”

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Iberia Express achieved its high rate of punctuality despite having progressively increased both its number of flights and the use of its fleet, which currently stands at 27 aircraft according to ch-aviation – 13 Airbus A320s, two A321s, and 12 A321neos. In 2024, for the first time in its 13-year history, Iberia Express exceeded 43,000 annual flights with a fleet utilization of 11 hours, a level that brings it closer to ultra-low-cost airlines.

The airline group’s statement concludes that “Iberia Express is achieving the same efficiency but with the added difficulty of its hybrid business model, which ensures connectivity with the departure and arrival banks of Iberia flights to continue feeding the group’s network.”

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