Airlines Were on Time in 2020, but Passenger Flights Operated Halved Compared to 2019, Reveals Cirium
4.1.2021 20:15:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
Over 180 of the major global airlines were on time in 2020, according to a new report by Cirium, the global aviation data company. The Cirium Airline Insights Review 2020 reveals that only 30 major airlines achieved this standard pre-pandemic. But over 60%—or 180 of 300 airlines globally—achieved a 90% or higher on-time arrival percentage since February 2020.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210104005632/en/
Cirium’s new report The Cirium Airline Insights Review 2020 reveals the world’s top 10 busiest airports of 2020. (Graphic: Business Wire)
On-time performance of the top 300 global airlines significantly improved as COVID-19 reduced the number of flights in the air. In 2020, airlines only flew half of the flights flown the previous year.
“The pandemic caused a significant reduction in flight volume with airlines operating 49% fewer flights in 2020. The factors that normally cause flight delays didn’t exist, such as congestion at the airport. Overall global passenger traffic was down in 2020 by 67% from the previous year,” said Jeremy Bowen, CEO of Cirium.
Cirium’s top 10 league table for flights operated by country shows that the majority of flights were operated in the US, despite a 42% year-over-year drop in the market. China maintained its position, with only 24% of that market’s flights down versus 2019.
Japan overtook India, moving up to 3rd place as India’s flights were down 50% versus 2019. The UK was hit heavily with 67% of flights down compared to last year, moving it to 8th place from 5th. Russia moved from 10th place in 2019 to 5th in 2020 and Indonesia moved into the top 10.
|
Top 10 countries by passenger flights flown 2020 |
||||
|
Rank |
Country |
Total flights flown 2020 |
Rank in 2019 |
% YoY diff |
|
1 |
United States |
5.1M |
#1 |
-42% |
|
2 |
China |
3.4M |
#2 |
-24% |
|
3 |
Japan |
638K |
#4 |
-43% |
|
4 |
India |
592K |
#3 |
-50% |
|
5 |
Russia |
486K |
#10 |
-34% |
|
6 |
Brazil |
382K |
#9 |
-53% |
|
7 |
Spain |
352K |
#7 |
-61% |
|
8 |
United Kingdom |
340K |
#5 |
-67% |
|
9 |
Indonesia |
333K |
#12 |
-53% |
|
10 |
Mexico |
332K |
#15 |
-44% |
|
Source: Cirium Core, flights tracked data (passenger flights - narrowbody, widebody and regional) for Jan 1 to Dec 31, date filed Jan 1, 2021 |
||||
Asia-Pacific carriers recovered much quicker in 2020 than their global peers and rose in the rankings in flights operated. Out of the top 10 global airlines, China Southern Airlines’ passenger flights only dropped 28% versus 2019. United Airlines was the most impacted of the top 10, with a 54% drop in flights flown versus 2019.
No European carriers feature in the 2020 list. Ryanair moved to 13th place (from 6th) as the airline’s flights flown were down 72% versus the year before. Lufthansa was 11th in 2019 but missed out on the 2020 top 10, finishing at 29th place as flights flown dropped by 69% in 2020.
|
Top 10 airlines by passenger flights flown 2020 |
|||||
|
Rank |
Airline code |
Airline |
Total flights flown 2020 |
Rank in 2019 |
% YoY diff |
|
1 |
WN |
Southwest Airlines |
896K |
#1 |
-34% |
|
2 |
AA |
American Airlines |
622K |
#3 |
-44% |
|
3 |
DL |
Delta Air Lines |
619K |
#2 |
-46% |
|
4 |
OO |
SkyWest Airlines |
597K |
#4 |
-30% |
|
5 |
CZ |
China Southern Airlines |
521K |
#7 |
-28% |
|
6 |
UA |
United Airlines |
372K |
#5 |
-54% |
|
7 |
MU |
China Eastern Airlines |
321K |
#9 |
-33% |
|
8 |
CA |
Air China |
312K |
#10 |
-30% |
|
9 |
6E |
IndiGo |
281K |
#8 |
-45% |
|
10 |
YX |
Republic Airways |
217K |
#15 |
-37% |
|
Source: Cirium Core, flights tracked data (passenger flights - narrowbody, widebody and regional) for Jan 1 to Dec 31, date filed Jan 1, 2021 |
|||||
“Domestic travel has recovered faster and airlines with a dominant domestic market come back quicker,” Bowen said. “That is especially the case in Asia-Pacific where recovery is more positive. The US and Europe have experienced setbacks with government-enforced restrictions and additional waves of COVID-19 affecting travel.”
Travel restrictions and the shift to more leisure travel versus business travel changed the top 10 league table for flights flown by airport extensively.
Chicago O’Hare is usually the busiest airport globally for passenger flights, however the pandemic caused a 46% reduction in flights for the airport in 2020. Three Chinese airports—Guangzhou Baiyun, Chengdu Shuangliu, and Shenzhen Bao’an—moved into the global top 10 busiest airports by arriving passenger flights.
|
Top 10 airports by passenger flights flown 2020 |
|||||
|
Rank |
Airport code |
Airport |
Total flights flown 2020 |
Rank in 2019 |
% YoY diff |
|
1 |
ATL |
Atlanta US |
260K |
#2 |
-40% |
|
2 |
DFW |
Dallas US |
235K |
#3 |
-30% |
|
3 |
ORD |
Chicago US |
234K |
#1 |
-46% |
|
4 |
DEN |
Denver US |
202K |
#5 |
-32% |
|
5 |
CLT |
Charlotte US |
182K |
#7 |
-32% |
|
6 |
CAN |
Guangzhou CN |
165K |
#13 |
-28% |
|
7 |
LAX |
Los Angeles US |
156K |
#4 |
-50% |
|
8 |
CTU |
Chengdu CN |
148K |
#37 |
-16% |
|
9 |
SZX |
Shenzhen CN |
139K |
#42 |
-16% |
|
10 |
SEA |
Seattle US |
137K |
#18 |
-36% |
|
Source: Cirium Core, flights tracked data (passenger flights - narrowbody, widebody and regional) for Jan 1 to Dec 31, date filed Jan 1, 2021 |
|||||
In 2019, London Heathrow was the 9th busiest airport for flights flown. In 2020, it ranked 31st and flights operating there were down 61% versus 2019. Amsterdam Airport Schiphol was the busiest airport in Europe. Flight operations there dropped 57% in 2020 and as a result the airport sits at 27th globally.
The Cirium Airline Insights Review 2020 provides additional insights on 2020 air travel industry and includes The On-Time Performance Review 2020 by Cirium.
To read the full Cirium Airline Insights Review 2020 – click here.
Ends
Note to editors:
Data for the passenger flights flown is based on set criteria, which includes passenger flights only (including combination flights – passenger and cargo) that are scheduled and aircraft market classes of narrowbody, widebody, and regional jets. It excludes other types, such as cargo and business jet flights, as well as unscheduled flights.
For further information please visit www.cirium.com and follow Cirium updates via LinkedIn and Twitter.
About Cirium
Cirium brings together powerful data and analytics to keep the world moving. Delivering insight, built from decades of experience in the sector, enabling travel companies, aircraft manufacturers, airports, airlines and financial institutions, among others, to make logical and informed decisions which shape the future of travel, growing revenues and enhancing customer experiences. Cirium is part of RELX, a global provider of information-based analytics and decision tools for professional and business customers.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210104005632/en/
Contact information
For media enquiries, please contact,
In the UK: Paul Charles / Michael Johnson / Balint Brunner at The PC Agency via cirium@pc.agency or +44 207 768 0001
In the Americas: Mike Arnot, at Juliett Alpha via cirium@juliettalpha.com
In Asia-Pacific: Tracy Cheung, at Cirium via tracy.cheung@cirium.com
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Boomi, a 12X Leader, Positioned Highest for Ability to Execute in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Integration Platform as a Service18.3.2026 17:30:00 EET | Press release
Boomi™, the data activation company, today announced it has been recognized as a Leader and positioned highest for Ability to Execute in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS). This marks the 12th consecutive time Boomi has been named a Leader– the longest recognized vendor in the report’s history. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260318987091/en/ Boomi, a 12X Leader, Positioned Highest for Ability to Execute in the 2026 Gartner® Magic Quadrant™ for Integration Platform as a Service Boomi attributes its continued industry recognition to its unwavering commitment to innovation, customer success, and ecosystem growth. Over the past year, Boomi has accelerated its investments in integration and automation, APIM, agent management, and data management to help enterprises transform fragmented systems and data into orchestrated processes and governed agentic workflows. Recent i
Torq Becomes the Cursor of Security Operations With New Agentic Builder18.3.2026 16:47:00 EET | Press release
Torq, the established agentic security operations leader, today unveiled Agentic Builder, a critical extension of the Torq AI SOC Platform that turns human intent into agentic outcomes. Agentic Builder enables SOCs to shift the cognitive load of engineering security automation from humans to machines. These Cursor-level capabilities eliminate all barriers to deliver production-grade agentic workflows and AI Agents that manage unlimited alerts 24x7, integrate with every level of the enterprise stack, streamline investigation, and respond at machine speed. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260318328878/en/ This news follows Torq’s recent announcement that it has secured a $140M Series D round at $1.2B valuation to lead the AI SOC and Agentic AI era. Torq AI Agents are now deeply embedded in the daily operations of Fortune 500 SOCs, managing millions of complex security tasks autonomously. Torq now protects hundred
Laserfiche Announces 2026 Run Smarter® Award Winners18.3.2026 16:17:00 EET | Press release
Laserfiche — the leading SaaS provider of intelligent content management — today announced the winners of the 2026 Laserfiche Run Smarter® Awards. These awards celebrate the visionaries and trailblazers who are redefining the possible, using Laserfiche to break down operational silos and catalyze a new era of enterprise-wide productivity. From a large city reimagining criminal justice to a financial services firm’s innovative use of AI for smarter service delivery: The winners enhance productivity, reimagine processes and improve lives with Laserfiche technology. “The true power of Laserfiche has always been in how it unlocks value — whether that is through delivering actionable intelligence, cost savings, or reclaimed time to put toward innovation,” said Karl Chan, CEO of Laserfiche. “This year’s honorees are at the forefront of information management, with many of them leveraging cloud and AI technology to modernize processes and achieve business transformation.” Congratulations to t
Andersen Consulting Bolsters Cybersecurity Offering Through Collaboration with Trillium Information Security Systems18.3.2026 15:30:00 EET | Press release
Andersen Consulting strengthens its technology and risk management capabilities through a Collaboration Agreement with Trillium Information Security Systems (TISS), a cybersecurity firm. With a presence in Canada and Pakistan, TISS delivers comprehensive cybersecurity solutions to organizations across the financial services, telecommunications, and public sectors. The firm’s team offers a broad suite of services, including security assessments, managed security operations, red team services, digital forensics & incident response, and GRC advisory. With nearly two decades of experience, TISS provides adaptive, intelligence-driven defenses that help clients anticipate and respond to evolving cyber threats. “At TISS, we work to create a safer digital environment by empowering organizations to operate securely and with confidence,” said Mahir Mohsin Sheikh, CEO of TISS. “Our collaboration with Andersen Consulting allows us to combine our deep technical expertise with a global consulting fr
I-Pulse Acquires CSI Technologies to Strengthen U.S. High-Energy Capacitor Manufacturing Capabilities18.3.2026 15:30:00 EET | Press release
Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Robert Friedland, and Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Laurent Frescaline, of I-Pulse, the world leader in high pulsed power technologies, are pleased to announce the acquisition of CSI Technologies, Inc., the California-based manufacturer of high-energy, high-voltage capacitors serving industrial, medical, and defense applications. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260318099794/en/ The strategic acquisition enhances I-Pulse’s pulsed power development and U.S. manufacturing capabilities, particularly in mining, geothermal energy, mineral exploration, and water resource applications. By integrating CSI Technologies’ proven capacitor design and production expertise, I-Pulse strengthens its access to a reliable supply chain and expands its ability to rapidly design, prototype, and manufacture compact, high-energy-density capacitors. Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of I-Pulse Rob
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom
