If punctuality is the name of the game, the Alice Springs-Adelaide route had a month to forget. Just one in two (50%) ASP-ADL flights arrived on time in July, while only 46 per cent departed within 15 minutes of schedule, according to the latest Bureau of Infrastructure and Transport Research Economics (BITRE) figures. That made it the worst-performing route for both on-time arrivals and departures among the nearly 60 routes tracked.
Peak performer

At the other end of the scale, Adelaide-Perth was the best route for on-time arrivals, with more than nine in ten (91.9%) of flights arriving on schedule.

For departures, Brisbane-Mount Isa took top honours, with 95.8 per cent of flights leaving on time.

Cancellations, meanwhile, were most prevalent on the Canberra-Sydney route, where 5.4 per cent of scheduled flights were cancelled in July. Mildura-Melbourne followed at 5.2 per cent, ahead of Sydney-Canberra (4.7%), Canberra-Melbourne (4.5%), Melbourne-Sydney (4.3%) and Sydney-Melbourne (4.2%).

Across all airlines and routes covered by BITRE, 78.4 per cent of flights arrived on time in July, while 78.8 per cent departed on schedule. The overall cancellation rate was 1.5 per cent. That represented an improvement on July 2025, when 73 per cent of flights arrived on time, 74.2 per cent departed on time and 3.1 per cent were cancelled.

Top airlines

Far North Queensland’s Hinterland was the best-performing airline for punctuality, recording 93.1 per cent on-time arrivals and 96.1 per cent on-time departures. Its cancellation rate was 0.4 per cent.

Virgin Australia Regional Airlines had the lowest on-time arrival result at 65.6 per cent, while Jetstar recorded the lowest departure figure at 70 per cent.

Cairns-based Skytrans had the highest cancellation rate at 3.6 per cent, while Virgin Australia Regional Airlines recorded no cancellations.

Among the major airlines, Qantas posted 81.4 per cent on-time arrivals and 82 per cent on-time departures, compared with Virgin Australia’s 76.3 per cent and 77.1 per cent, respectively.

30M+ pax impacted

Travel insurance comparison expert iSelect has highlighted the scale of Australia’s flight disruptions, with more than 30 million passengers affected by delays or cancellations in 2025.

According to its Australian Airport Delay Index, Sydney recorded the biggest impact, with an estimated 6.7 million passengers affected by delays or cancellations, while Melbourne followed with 6.3 million.

Of course, disruption wasn’t confined to the capitals. Hobart saw 27 per cent of departures delayed, while the Sunshine Coast had the highest delay rate among the top 10 airports, with almost one in three flights leaving late.

“Delays are unfortunately a reality of air travel, particularly at Australia’s busiest airports where even small disruptions can affect thousands of passengers,” iSelect general insurance general manager Adrian Bennett said.

“Our analysis shows that millions of travellers were impacted by delayed departures last year alone, highlighting why it’s important to allow extra time when travelling, particularly during holiday and peak seasons.”

Why it matters

Flight delays are already the biggest frustration for Australian air travellers, according to new research from luggage platform Send My Bag. 

Its Australian Travel Index, based on a survey of 2,000 Aussie adults who flew in the past year, found 57 per cent ranked delays as their top pain point, ahead of check-in queues (34%) and security queues (31%). 

More than a third also believe airlines are not doing enough about delays (37%) or cancellations (39%). 

With almost half (48%) travelling overseas less often amid rising costs, reliable domestic air services are becoming even more important.

KARRYON UNPACKS: The national punctuality figure only tells part of the story. Look closer and Australia’s domestic network is a real mixed bag, with some routes running like clockwork and others far less reliably.