UK's best and worst airports for flight delays revealed

9 May 2023, 14:10

A definitive ranking of the UK's best and worst airports for flight delays have been revealed, with the Midlands landing top of the list.

The list follows analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data conducted by the PA news agency and takes into account all scheduled and chartered departures throughout 2022.

Birmingham Airport - the seventh busiest airport in the country - came bottom for punctuality, with each flight landing on average half an hour behind schedule last year.

It's the second year the airport has topped the list as the least punctual UK airport, with delay times more than doubling on the previous year's figures.

Cancelled flights were not included as part of the analysis of 26 airports.

A spokesman from Birmingham Airport said the flight industry fought "hard to recover" following the global impact of Covid-19.

It added ground operations were now "running smoothly" following recent disruption, with over ten million people travelling through Birmingham airport last year.

"This year, the first since 2020 not impacted by Covid, our airport is running smoothly with customers set to equal or exceed pre-pandemic numbers," the spokesman added.

"Customers using Birmingham airport this summer can expect changes to walking routes as we build our £40 million new security hall, set to be ready for June 2024."

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It's not all doom and gloom though, as nearby East Midlands Airport came out as the most punctual UK airport where flights are concerned, with an average flight delay time of 13 minutes.

Second place where delays were concerned was Doncaster Sheffield - an airport which actually closed in November last year - and Manchester Airport, with an average delay time of 29 minutes.

Luton Airport topped the list where London's airports were concerned (28 minutes), followed closely by Gatwick (27 minutes) and Heathrow (22 minutes).

Northern Ireland's two airports appeared to excel where punctuality is concerned, with Belfast International Airport ranking 21st (16 minute delay) and Belfast City Airport coming joint 22nd (15 minutes).

Full list of worst UK airports for flight delays

Below is the full list of UK Airports ranked on average departing flight delays (from longest to shortest).

1. Birmingham (30 minutes)
2. Manchester (29 minutes)
3. Doncaster Sheffield (29 minutes)
4. Luton (28 minutes)
5. Gatwick (27 minutes)
6. Bristol (26 minutes)
7. Cardiff (24 minutes)
8. Edinburgh (24 minutes)
9. Heathrow (22 minutes)
10. Newcastle (21 minutes)
11. Isle of Man (21 minutes)
12. Aberdeen (21 minutes)
13. Leeds Bradford (20 minutes)
14. Southend (20 minutes)
15. Glasgow (19 minutes)
16. Stansted (19 minutes)
17. Southampton (19 minutes)
18. Bournemouth (19 minutes)
19. London City (17 minutes)
20. Jersey (17 minutes)
21. Belfast International (16 minutes)
22. Liverpool John Lennon (15 minutes)
23. Belfast City (15 minutes)
24. Exeter (14 minutes)
25. Teesside (14 minutes)
26. East Midlands (13 minutes)