For the second month in a row, the percentage of U.S. passenger flights in August that were canceled increased on a year-over-year basis, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s monthly Air Travel Consumer Report.
Carriers canceled 2 percent of their scheduled domestic flights, up from the rate of 1.5 percent in August 2023, but down from the July 2024 rate of 2.9 percent.
Airlines with the highest August percentage of cancellations include JetBlue at 4.5 percent, Spirit Airlines at 4 percent and Frontier Airlines at 3.3 percent. Carriers with the lowest rates include Southwest Airlines at 0.9 percent, Alaska Airlines Network at 0.9 percent and Hawaiian Airlines at 1.5 percent, according to DOT. Networks include branded codeshare partners.
U.S. carriers in August operated more than 647,200 flights, up 2.6 percent year over year. but down 1.5 percent from the July 2024 number.
Those carriers in August handled 42.5 million bags and posted a mishandled baggage rate of 0.64 percent, higher than the rate of 0.61 percent in August 2023, but lower than the rate of 0.75 percent in July 2024.
In September, DOT released airline service submissions data for the months of January to May 2024. The agency is reporting that information—which includes airline service complaints, inquiries and opinions—in lieu of detailed complaint data while it continues to upgrade its processing system.
