Jetstar surprisingly beat out two Aussie competitors when it came to having the highest percentage for on-time arrivals and lowest level of cancellations last month.
The latest figures from the Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE), released on Thursday, show among the major domestic airlines, Jetstar recorded 67.8 per cent for punctuality and reliability.
It was followed by Qantas at 62.5 per cent and Virgin Australia at 54.2 per cent.
Of the regional airlines, Bonza recorded 73.9 per cent for on time arrivals, followed by Rex Airlines at 70.5 per cent, Skytrans at 69.4 per cent, QantasLink at 68.8 per cent and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines at 60.1 per cent.
Jetstar also achieved the highest level of on time departures for November at 66.7 per cent, followed by Qantas at 63.9 per cent and Virgin Australia at 57 per cent.
November was the fourth month in 2023 that Jetstar outperformed Virgin Airlines for on time departures (July, August, September and November) and the fifth month this year it outperformed the airline for on time arrivals (June, July, August, September and November).
Jetstar also beat Virgin and Qantas when it came to cancellations with Virgin recording the highest percentage at 6.3 per cent, followed by Skytrans at 4.7 per cent and Bonza at 4.2 per cent.
Virgin Australia Regional Airlines came in fourth at 3.6 per cent followed by Qantas and QantasLink at 3.3 per cent and finally Jetstar at just 2.7 per cent.
But it was Rex Airlines with the least at 0.9 per cent.
“The unacceptably high number of cancellations on Qantas’ Canberra-Sydney flights has continued to drop, with a change in fleet mix used to help protect the route from disruption on the airline’s regional network,” a Qantas statement read.
“In November, less than four per cent of flights were cancelled, down from 10 per cent in October.”
According to the airline, around 70 per cent of Qantas flights have departed on time so far in December, including accounting for the impact of Tropical Cyclone Jasper.
The latest figures come as a new survey revealed that almost 40 per cent of flights were cancelled or delayed in the past year.
Consumer advocate Choice conducted a poll of about 9,000 Australians that found “consumers still face a number of difficulties when dealing with the aviation industry”.
According to the survey, 63 per cent of respondents claimed that no reason was given for cancellations while 65 per cent found the cancellation process “very hard”.
Of those who pursued a refund for a flight cancellation, 47 per cent claimed it took a month to get their money back, with 20 per cent claiming it took more than six months for a refund.
“Our survey found people are feeling frustrated as flights continue to be delayed and cancelled, often without reason or sufficient warning,” Choice senior campaigns and policy adviser, Bea Sherwood said.
With airlines such as Qantas and Virgin offering refunds and flight credits, and sometimes accommodation to passengers whose flights are cancelled, there’s still a push to enforce compensation laws.
Advocates say it would act as a greater cost disincentive against cancelling flights and set out hard time frames to pay affected customers.
As such, Choice has been advocating for reform to the aviation sector for many years, and together with the Consumers’ Federation of Australia have recently made a submission to the Federal Government’s Aviation Green Paper, calling for new airline specific consumer protections.
Adam Glezer, from Consumer Champion, who has taken part in three round tables for the Aviation Green Paper, said he is not surprised by Choice’s findings, adding that he’s been advocating for protections similar to those in the EU and UK for several years.
“They have been in place since the start of 2005 and hold airlines accountable for cancelling flights within 14 days of departure and for flights delayed greater than three hours (as long as it’s within the airline’s control),” he told news.com.au.
“If deterrents aren’t put in place for the airlines, nothing will change.”