Delta Air Lines used to be among the worst airlines in on-time performance.
But after a dismal showing in 2010 gave Atlanta-based Delta a reality check, the company launched an effort to fix the problem. With some changes and a bit of luck from good weather, Delta posted big improvements for 2011.
For the year, Delta ranked fifth in on-time arrivals among 16 airlines ranked, with 82.3 percent of its flights arriving within 15 minutes of scheduled time, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
That’s up from 15th out of 18 carriers ranked in 2010.
David Holtz, Delta’s vice president of operations control for Delta, said “2011 was obviously the year of the turnaround for us.”
The airline sharpened its focus on on-time departures, using a carefully scripted process for the tasks required to launch a flight, including fueling, catering, cargo loading and passenger boarding. That’s especially important for early morning flights, which set the tone for the rest of the day, he said.
“It’s more of a symphony of movement out there that lends itself to an on-time departure,” Holtz said, adding that passengers may notice a more predictable process for boarding as part of the changes.
The airline also added maintenance stations to reduce mechanical delays, as well as more customer service training.
“There’s a cost to the airline when you don’t run an on-time operation,” including the cost of rebooking passengers whose flight delays cause them to miss connections and the cost of dealing with baggage problems, Holtz said.
In 2011’s on-time arrival ranking, Delta still came in behind Atlanta rival AirTran Airways, which ranked 3rd with 84.4 percent on-time arrivals. AirTran was 6th in 2010.
But Delta beat Atlanta newcomer Southwest Airlines, which was 6th with an 81.3 percent on-time rate. Southwest acquired AirTran last year and operates AirTran as a subsidiary.
Atlanta-based Atlantic Southeast Airlines, a Delta Connection carrier now known as ExpressJet, ranked 14th, vs. 11th a year earlier.
Delta this year plans to improve how it recovers after flight delays and cancellations. “We’re absolutely working hard to reset the airline after any event and get us back on schedule,” Holtz said.
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