Why You May Want to Consider Delta for Your Next Disney World Trip

When it comes to choosing an airline for your Disney World trip, it might feel like information overload.

Terminal C at Orlando Airport

But, we think we’ve figured out what a top airline might be to get you to Disney World with as little stress as possible.

FlightAware, a company that provides real-time updates on flights around the world, found that over 20% of all scheduled flights this year were either canceled or delayed. That’s one in every five flights! This week the aviation industry also witnessed what happens when systems fall apart thanks to Southwest Airlines. The company canceled a majority of its flights due to internal issues, leading to a drop in stocks and causing its CEO to issue an apology.

Delayed and canceled Southwest flights ©FlightAware

With so many airlines experiencing issues, the question becomes: which ones are actually reliable? Aviation data analytics company Cirium compared airlines to discover which had the most on-time flights in 2022. They looked at 99.5% of all flights in North America from January 1st through December 15th to see how 10 different airlines measured up. The firm defined an “on-time” flight as one that “arrives within 15 minutes of the scheduled gate arrival.” Eager to see how your favorites stacked up? Let’s take a look!

United didn’t do too shabby!

Air Canada came in dead last, with an on-time percentage of just 55.56%. Yikes! Frontier Airlines, a popular budget airline, came in 6th place at 68.99%. Southwest was just ahead of Frontier, with nearly a quarter of their flights being delayed or canceled and an on-time percentage of 74.68%. American came in at number 4 with a score of 78.77% and United at number 3 with 81.26%. Alaska Airlines, a smaller airline, slipped into the second-best spot with a slight edge over United at 81.42%. But who was the best overall?

©American Airlines

It was none other than Delta Air Lines, with an honorable on-time percentage of 84.10%! Delta was also ranked number 1 last year, so they’ve maintained consistency. What causes flights to be delayed? There are factors out of the airlines’ control, like severe weather, but many airlines face other pressures. Staffing shortages, air traffic control issues, and internal procedural shortcomings have added to the growing number of delayed and canceled flights.

Next time you fly, whether to Disney or another destination, you might want to keep this ranking in mind! As always, stay tuned to our site for updated travel information to help you make the best choices.