Isle airlines lead nation in on-time performance
Aloha was tops for the last two months while Hawaiian was leader for all of 2006
Aloha Airlines ended 2006 by finishing first in on-time performance and fewest customer complaints for the second month in a row, even though rival Hawaiian Airlines took the top on-time honors for the full year.
Aloha, which in November snapped Hawaiian's 36-month streak of being the most punctual airline, had 93.7 percent of its flights arrive on time, according to a U.S. Department of Transportation Air Travel Consumer Report released yesterday. Hawaiian was second at 90.1 percent with Mesa Air Group, parent of interisland carrier go!, ninth at 69.9 percent.
"Competing against the nation's best carriers and coming out best in on-time arrival and customer satisfaction for two months straight is a tribute to the can-do spirit of the men and women of Aloha Airlines," said David Banmiller, Aloha's president and chief executive.
For the full year, though, Hawaiian came out on top in on-time performance for the third year in a row at 93.8 percent. The DOT considers a plane on time if the flight arrives within 15 minutes of its scheduled arrival.
Aloha, which resumed reporting voluntarily to the DOT in April after a gap of several years, wasn't included in the full-year rankings, while Mesa was 13th at 73.3 percent. The 12-month industry average for the 20 airlines reporting was 75.4 percent.
"Hawaiian's No. 1 ranking as America's most punctual airline for the third year running is testament to the pride and professionalism of our employees," said Mark Dunkerley, president and CEO of Hawaiian.
In other categories for December, Aloha was first for fewest complaints per 100,000 passengers with 0.0 percent, followed by Mesa in sixth at 0.36 percent and Hawaiian in 18th at 1.26 percent. For mishandled-baggage reports, Aloha was second at 3.90 percent for every 1,000 passengers, followed by Hawaiian in third at 4.02 percent and Mesa in 17th at 13.99 percent. And for fewest cancellations, Aloha was second at 0.5 percent, followed by Hawaiian at 0.8 percent and Mesa in 15th at 4.2 percent.
In the quarterly ranking of fewest oversales, which refer to passengers denied boarding, Aloha was first at 0.00 percent for every 10,000 passengers, followed by Hawaiian in fourth at 0.24 percent and Mesa in 12th at 1.08 percent.
In full-year rankings, Hawaiian was first in fewest mishandled baggage complaints at 3.14 percent for every 1,000 passengers, marking the second straight year that Hawaiian finished on top in that category. Mesa was 16th at 10.55 percent.
For fewest oversales, Hawaiian was third at 0.13 percent for every 10,000 passengers with Mesa 13th at 1.59 percent. For fewest complaints, Hawaiian was eighth at 0.64 percent for every 100,000 passengers with Mesa 17th at 1.26 percent. For fewest oversales, Hawaiian was third at 0.13 percent for every 10,000 passengers with Mesa 13th at 1.59 percent. For fewest canceled flights, Hawaiian was fourth at 0.5 percent, according to monthly data compiled by Hawaiian for the top 10 carriers. Mesa's number was unavailable because the year-end numbers weren't calculated by the DOT.