Airline timekeeping at Scotland's airports hits a 13-year high

THE increasing hassles of air travel have been eased for passengers at Scotland's two busiest airports, which started the year with their best flight punctuality since the 1990s.

Airline timekeeping at Edinburgh and Glasgow between January and March was at its peak since 1998, according to Civil Aviation Authority figures published yesterday.

Significantly, the figures also showed an improvement on those recorded during the depths of the economic slump two years ago, when airlines redoubled their efforts to cut costs and fewer flights reduced congestion.

Despite snow disruption at Edinburgh - the country's busiest airport - 85 per cent of scheduled (non-charter) flights operated "on time" this year, which is defined by the aviation industry as less then 15 minutes late.

Glasgow performed even better, with 86 per cent of flights being punctual.

The figures are up to 8 per cent better than the same period last year, when snow also caused disruption, and follow a previous high of 84 per cent punctuality at both airports in 2009.

Average delays were cut to nine minutes at both airports, up to six minutes less than a year ago and similar to 2009 levels.

One factor in this year's improvement is thought to be better performance by easyJet, which is the biggest airline at both Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The carrier was beset by delays caused by crew shortages last year and it said punctuality had got better since.

A spokeswoman said it had seen a "steady and continuous improvement in on-time performance", with Scotland "in line with the overall network".

She said this was due to "an increased focus on our operation - we have invested in additional crew, have increased our standby aircraft from five to six and are continuously testing our crew rosters."

Edinburgh airport's boss, who took over last year, said cutting delays had been a priority.

Managing director Kevin Brown said: "Punctuality has been a focus for my team and I and we're delighted to see that we're getting better.

"We still have a way to go and our work in this area is ongoing.

"We're working closely with our airline partners and their handling agents to continuously improve our performance.

"Recent investments such as the upgrade to our taxiway will also help.

"This combination of hard work, good communication and investment has delivered this great result and will drive us on to better service in the future."Glasgow airport said its on-time performance reflected the overall improvements reported by the CAA across the UK.

A spokesman said: "Like the CAA, we believe there is scope for future improvements and we'll continue to work closely with our airline partners to maintain and, where possible, enhance our punctuality."

Across the UK's ten busiest airports, the CAA reported delays averaged ten minutes, the lowest since 1995, with punctuality averaging 82 per cent.

Iain Osborne, CAA group director for regulatory policy, said: "We welcome this quarter's punctuality performance.

"However, the CAA believes that future improvements in performance through enhanced airport resilience and airspace efficiency are possible."

Among the 75 destinations with the most passengers, scheduled flights to and from Dubai recorded the worst on-time performance of 54 per cent, while Toronto had the highest average delay of 23 minutes.

UK flights to and from Bristol had the highest on-time performance, at 92 per cent, as well as the shortest average delay, of five minutes.