Domestic Flight Delays at 6.7%... Air Seoul Highest at 13.2%

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Publishes 'Air Traffic Service Report'
Total of 36 Million Air Passengers Last Year

Last year, the delay rate for domestic flights (over 30 minutes) was 6.7%, and the delay rate for international flights (over 60 minutes) was 2.7%. Due to the impact of COVID-19 causing a halt in international flight demand, the number of domestic passengers reached an all-time high.

On the 13th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the publication of the "2021 Air Traffic Service Report" containing this information. The report includes detailed data such as the performance of national carriers, delay and cancellation rates, and the status of damage relief claims.

Last year, the on-time rate for domestic flights was 92.4%, the delay rate was 6.7%, and the cancellation rate was 0.9%. The domestic delay rate increased by 2.3 percentage points (p) compared to the previous year but decreased by 5.0 p compared to 2019. The domestic delay rates were 12.0% in 2017, 13.4% in 2018, 11.7% in 2019, and 4.4% in 2020.

Among airlines, Fly Gangwon had the lowest domestic delay rate at 1.6%, while Air Seoul had the highest at 13.2%.

The main cause of delays was connection delays, accounting for 77.4%. The proportion of connection delays has steadily decreased from 91.7% in 2017.

There were a total of 3,521 domestic cancellations, with the proportion increasing by 0.05 p compared to the previous year. The main reason for cancellations was weather-related, with Air Premia showing the lowest cancellation rate at 0.37%.

Last year, the on-time rate for international flights by national carriers was 97.3%, the delay rate was 2.7%, and the cancellation rate was 0.07%. The overall delay rate for all airlines showed no change compared to 2020.

Although the delay rate for low-cost carriers (LCCs) increased, large carriers accounted for 92.7% of international flights, so the overall impact was minimal. Due to the decrease in the number of international flights, congestion at Incheon International Airport decreased, which appears to have improved the delay rate of large carriers.

Among foreign airlines, of the eight airlines that operated more than 500 flights last year, Singapore Airlines had the lowest delay rate at 0.8%, while Delta Air Lines had the highest at 3.8%.

Among national carriers, Air Seoul had the highest international cancellation rate at 1.45%, but all cancellations were due to weather.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport also included results from an Incheon Airport survey applying the new delay and operation standards to be introduced in 2023 in the report. Under the new guidelines, the delay measurement standard, previously based on runway takeoff and landing times, will change to gate departure and arrival times. Both domestic and international flights will be considered delayed if exceeding 15 minutes.

The international departure delay rate at Incheon Airport was 2.1% under the current standard but rose to 4.6% when measured by gate departure and arrival times. This was analyzed to be due to many flights taking off between 15 and 60 minutes after the scheduled time.

Last year, the total number of air traffic service users was 36.36 million, a decrease of 7.7% compared to the previous year and 70.5% compared to 2019. This marked the lowest level in the past 10 years due to the impact of COVID-19.

Among them, domestic passengers numbered 33.15 million, an increase of 31.7% compared to the previous year and 0.5% compared to 2019, reaching an all-time high, while international passengers numbered 3.21 million, a decrease of 77.5% compared to the previous year and 96.4% compared to 2019.

Regarding domestic passenger transport performance, large carriers increased by 12.1% and low-cost carriers (LCCs) increased by 41.3% compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, the number of air-related damage relief claims received by the Korea Consumer Agency last year was 484, a decrease of about 81% compared to the previous year. This is believed to be due to the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic reducing the number of international flights and users.

By type of damage, 407 cases were related to cancellation and refund penalties, and 30 cases were related to delays and cancellations.

When converted to the number of damage relief claims per one million users, national carriers recorded 3.3 cases, and foreign airlines recorded 187.0 cases. Among national carriers, T'way Air had the highest at 4.8 cases, and Jeju Air had the lowest at 1.5 cases.

Shim Ji-young, head of the Aviation Industry Division at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "We hope this report will help air traffic users in choosing airlines," and added, "We will continue to provide timely service information."