AirHelp data reveals 4.6M UK passengers faced disruption in Q1

London Gatwick continues to rank as one of the most unpunctual airports

Travel tech company supporting passengers with flight disruptions AirHelp has revealed that more than 4.6 million passengers across the UK experienced disruptions when travelling on a plane between January and March this year. 

With over 149,000 registered flights departing from the UK, 21 million people planned a trip during this period. 

AirHelp’s data uncovered that approximately 21% of travellers experienced disruptions. 

Whilst most of the UK passengers faced delays under 3 hours, meaning they were not eligible for financial compensation, over 480,000 people had the right to claim and receive financial compensation from their airline. 

It found that 410,000 travellers had their trips cancelled altogether.

London Gatwick and Manchester International Airport were found to have the highest disruption rate at 25%, affecting a total of 1.2 million passengers between January and March. 

Meanwhile, the most punctual airports during this period were Liverpool John Lennon Airport and London City Airport, with only 13% and 15% of passengers disrupted respectively. 

When looking at the most disrupted routes from UK airports with more than 20,000 passengers, Manchester International Airport to Dubai Airport ranked the highest with over 58% of flights disrupted during this period. 

Routes from London Heathrow Airport take the second and fourth spot on the ranking - with its route to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Kenya having a disruption rate of 56%. 

In third place is Glasgow International Airport to Dubai Airport, with 54% of passengers facing delays or cancellations. 

Passengers who travelled from Heathrow Airport to Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia, enjoyed over 97% of the flights taking place between January and March departing on time. 

London Heathrow to Baiyun in China and London Heathrow to Beijing Capital International Airport were the other routes with the highest percentage of punctuality at 96%. 

"With one of the most reliable and accurate collections of flight data in the world, we aim to provide holidaymakers and business travellers with an in-depth look at how airlines and airports are performing, said Tomasz Pawliszyn, CEO of AirHelp.

"We are currently facing ongoing strikes and rising disruptions levels, which not only highlights the areas the industry has for improvement, but the opportunities to provide passengers with the best experience possible."