Background
Introduction
The Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics (BITRE) monitors the punctuality and reliability of major domestic airlines operating between Australian airports. The purpose of this is to allow for evaluation of overall industry and individual airline performance, so that consumers of air travel can make informed decisions.
Coverage
The following domestic airlines currently report this information monthly to the BITRE: Jetstar, Qantas, QantasLink, Regional Express, Tigerair Australia, Virgin Australia and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines. Data has been gathered since November 2003, although some airlines commenced reporting at a later date, including Jetstar which first reported in May 2004, MacAir in July 2005, Tigerair Australia in April 2008 and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines in May 2013. MacAir ceased operations in February 2009 and data was not received for December 2008 onwards. Virgin Blue was rebranded as Virgin Australia in May 2011 and Tiger Airways was rebranded as Tigerair Australia in July 2013 and time series data in Microsoft Excel spread sheet format on the BITRE website have been revised to reflect these changes. Services operated by Skywest on behalf of Virgin Australia using ATR/F100 aircraft commenced in November 2011 and were shown separately as Virgin Australia - ATR/F100 Operations. Virgin Australia Regional Airlines commenced operations in May 2013. It was formed after the acquisition of Skywest by Virgin Australia and represented a combination of operations previously reported under Skywest and Virgin Australia - ATR/F100 Operations. In January 2016, Virgin Australia transferred their ATR fleet from Virgin Australia Regional Airlines to Virgin Australia.
On time performance is reported for Australian domestic routes for which the passenger load averaged 8 000 or more passengers per month over the previous six months and where two or more airlines operated in competition on those routes. There were 66 routes that met this definition in May 2016. Over time, routes which meet these criteria change as airline networks and traffic levels vary.
Participating airlines also report their overall monthly network performance figures. Total industry figures encompass all services operated by reporting airlines only. These airlines collectively carried over 95 per cent of total domestic passengers (regular public transport only) in 2015.
Definitions
A flight arrival is counted as "on time" if it arrived at the gate before 15 minutes after the scheduled arrival time shown in the carriers' schedule. Neither diverted nor cancelled flights count as on time. Similarly, a flight departure is counted as "on time" if it departs the gate before 15 minutes after the scheduled departure time shown in the carriers' schedule.
A flight is regarded as a cancellation if it is cancelled or rescheduled less than 7 days prior to its scheduled departure time.
On time performance is measured as the number of flights operating on time as a percentage of the number of flights operated on any particular sector. Cancellations are measured as the number of flights cancelled as a percentage of the number of flights scheduled for that particular sector.
The method of capturing on time performance varies between airlines utilising different recording systems. Jetstar and Qantas jet aircraft use Aircraft Communication Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) to electronically measure on time performance. Regional Express, Tigerair, Virgin Australia, Virgin Australia Regional Airlines and the Qantas non-jet fleet record on time performance manually using records from pilots, gate agents and/or ground crews.
Reports
Reports are published monthly on the BITRE web site. After collection of initial data, aggregate reports are subject to internal audit by participating airlines prior to publication. The target date for publication is 15 working days after of the end of the reporting period.
Airline On Time Performance, 2025 Calendar Year
Summary – 2025 Calendar Year
For the year ended December 2025, on time performance (OTP) over all routes operated by participating airlines (Hinterland, Jetstar, Qantas, QantasLink, Rex Airlines, Skytrans Australia (formerly Smartlynx Australia), Virgin Australia and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines) averaged 76.9 per cent for on time arrivals and 77.7 per cent for on time departures. The cancellation rate for the year was 2.5 per cent. The equivalent figures for 2024 were 74.6 per cent for on time arrivals, 75.4 per cent for on time departures and 2.6 per cent for cancellations. Airlines’ on time performance varies across the routes they serve. Individual route data by specific airline for 60 routes which operated for at least part of the 2025 calendar year are shown on pages 9-21.
The 2025 on time arrivals figure was lower than the long-term average (average over the period of OTP reporting starting in November 2003) performance for all routes (80.5 per cent) and the on-time departures figure was also lower than the long-term average (81.6 per cent). The rate of cancellations was higher than the long-term average of 2.2 per cent.
On time arrivals
The Qantas network (Qantas and QantasLink combined operations) recorded 77.9 per cent for on time arrivals while the Virgin Australia network (Virgin Australia and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines combined operations) recorded 76.0 per cent. Hinterland achieved the highest on time arrivals at 88.4 per cent, followed by Skytrans Australia at 85.1 per cent, QantasLink at 78.3 per cent, Qantas at 77.2 per cent, Virgin Australia at 76.0 per cent, Jetstar at 75.2 per cent, Rex Airlines at 73.0 per cent and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines at 71.5 per cent.
On time departures
The Qantas network recorded 78.8 per cent for on time departures while the Virgin Australia network recorded 77.0 per cent. Hinterland achieved the highest level of on time departures for 2025 at 92.5 per cent, followed by Skytrans Australia at 86.3 per cent, Qantas at 79.7 per cent, QantasLink at 78.3 per cent, Virgin Australia at 77.2 per cent, Rex Airlines at 76.0 per cent, Jetstar at 73.6 per cent and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines at 67.6 per cent.
Cancellations
Skytrans Australia recorded the highest percentage of cancellations at 8.4 per cent during the year. The second highest cancellation rate was from QantasLink at 3.6 per cent, followed by Qantas at 2.7 per cent, Rex Airlines at 2.5 per cent, Jetstar at 2.2 per cent, Virgin Australia at 1.7 per cent, Virgin Australia Regional Airlines at 1.1 per cent and Hinterland at 0.8 per cent.
Routes
Of the 60 routes which met the criteria for OTP reporting, the Townsville-Cairns route (Jan 2025 only) had the highest percentage of on time arrivals (90.9 per cent) and the highest percentage of on time departures (90.9 per cent). For those routes reporting for the entirety of 2025, Emerald-Brisbane had the highest percentage of on time arrivals (89.8 per cent) and the highest percentage of on time departures (88.4 per cent). The Hamilton Island-Sydney route had the lowest percentage of on time arrivals (60.8 per cent) and the lowest percentage of on time departures (61.6 per cent).
Cancellations were highest on the Canberra-Sydney route at 6.2 per cent, followed by the Sydney-Canberra route at 5.6 per cent, the Port Lincoln-Adelaide and Sydney-Melbourne routes at 4.4 per cent, the Port Macquarie-Sydney and Melbourne-Sydney routes at 4.3 per cent, the Adelaide-Port Lincoln and Gladstone-Brisbane routes at 4.1 per cent, the Sydney-Port Macquarie route at 4.0 per cent and the Devonport-Melbourne route at 3.9 per cent.
Cancellations were lowest on the Melbourne-Ayers Rock at 0.0 per cent, followed by the Sydney-Hamilton Island route at 0.1 per cent, Ayers Rock-Melbourne and Sydney-Cairns routes at 0.3 per cent, and the Perth-Newman and Melbourne-Sunshine Coast routes at 0.4 per cent.
Airports
Of the airports with OTP reporting for 2025, Emerald Airport recorded the highest percentage of on time arrivals (86.2 per cent) and the highest percentage of on time departures (88.4 per cent). Port Macquarie Airport recorded the lowest percentage of on time arrivals (70.0 per cent) and Broome Airport recorded the lowest percentage of on time departures (64.8 per cent). These figures only refer to reported routes and do not cover all flights at these airports.
Table 1: Total Industry On Time Performance for - 2025
| Reporting Airlines | Sectors Scheduled | Arrivals On Time % | Departures On Time % | Cancellations % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hinterland | 18,415 | 88.4 | 92.5 | 0.8 |
| Jetstar | 96,686 | 75.2 | 73.6 | 2.2 |
| Qantas - all QF designated services | 231,962 | 77.9 | 78.8 | 3.2 |
| Rex Airlines | 52,716 | 73.0 | 76.0 | 2.5 |
| Skytrans Australia (formerly SmartLynx Australia) | 6,191 | 85.1 | 86.3 | 8.4 |
| Virgin Australia - all VA designated services | 145,379 | 76.0 | 77.0 | 1.7 |
| All Airlines | 551,349 | 76.9 | 77.7 | 2.5 |
| Individual operating entities | ||||
| Qantas | 88,886 | 77.2 | 79.7 | 2.7 |
| QantasLink | 143,076 | 78.3 | 78.3 | 3.6 |
| Virgin Australia | 143,031 | 76.0 | 77.2 | 1.7 |
| Virgin Australia Regional Airlines | 2,348 | 71.5 | 67.6 | 1.1 |
Figure 1. Total Industry Arrivals and Departures On Time by month from December 2020
Figure 2. Total Industry Cancellations by month from December 2020
Airline on-time performance—annual reports
These reports summarise annual (calendar or financial year) punctuality and reliability data of major domestic and regional airlines operating between Australian airports. Details are published for individual airlines on competitive routes and for airports on those routes.
Airline on-time performance—monthly reports and time series data
This report covers monthly punctuality and reliability data of major domestic and regional airlines operating between Australian airports. Details are published for individual airlines on competitive routes and for airports on those routes.
Publication of monthly Domestic Airline On Time Performance statistics was suspended from April 2020 to December 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19 related travel restrictions on activity levels and to reduce the reporting burden on airlines during that period.