T&L names 2008’s best, worst airlines for on time arrivals

Travel & Leisure magazine has put together its annual list of the best and worst airlines for 2008 in terms of on time arrivals.

The rankings deal with airlines’ records for punctuality, with those oft-delayed carriers necessarily showing up on the worst list, and those that arrive on time figuring on the best list. No great science there. But before I list the magazine’s picks for best and worst, it’s worth noting the remarkable improvement — in T&L’s eyes, anyway — of US Airways.

Last year it ranked third on the worst carriers of the year list, with the magazine saying fewer than 68 percent of its flights having arrived on time. This year, it’s at the third spot on the best list, with nearly 80 percent of its flights arriving on time.

Anyway, here are the best:

  1. Hawaiian Airlines (92% on time)
  2. Southwest (80%)
  3. US Airways (79%)
  4. Frontier (78%)
  5. Skywest (78%)

And the worst:

  1. American (68%)
  2. United (69%)
  3. Comair (70%)
  4. American Eagle (71%)
  5. Atlantic Southwest (72%)