Revealed: The UK’s most delayed flight routes

Passengers departing for Poland, Dubai and Paris may have to sit tight at the gate

The UK’s most disrupted flight paths have been revealed, with passengers bound for Poland likely to touch down over 30 minutes behind schedule.

A Ryanair flight from Leeds Bradford to Lawica, Poland was found to be the most delayed route. Passengers frequently faced an average delay of 36 minutes, with an average scheduled arrival time of 11.51am and an average actual arrival time of 12.27pm.

Business communications provider Esendex announced the least punctual routes where air passengers are most likely to face a delay ahead of the summer holiday season of travel.

Those travelling from Birmingham to Dubai in the UAE could also expect a half-hour delay to their planned landing time followed by a Channel hop from East Midlands Airport to Paris’ Orly Airport, the UK’s third most delayed flight route, with an average delay of 28 minutes.

Esendex analysed over 250 flight routes based on upcoming scheduled flights at 20 UK Airports using FlightRadar24 to create the Delay to Departure report.

Domestic and international flights departing Bristol Airport appeared the most times in the top 10 most delayed flight routes with three short-haul journeys leaving the south west aviation hub behind schedule.

Over the past year, Esendex assessed every completed flight per flight code taking an average scheduled arrival time and an average actual arrival time to calculate if the flight route was delayed, early or on time.

Aviation expert Sean Moulton told The Independent: “Flight delays occur for a multitude of reasons. An airline may not want to leave connecting passengers behind, so holding a flight to meet that connection ensures a good service for as many people as possible.

“Additionally, airlines across Europe are struggling with pilot and crew recruitment. Between shifts, staff are mandated to take a certain number of hours break meaning, if an airline is short staffed or has a high absentee rate, it may lead to delays until crew return to their legally permitted hours.

“At airports which are highly slot constrained such as Heathrow and Manchester, airlines risk losing their slot if they are not on time. As such, routes to less constrained airports tend to suffer from aircraft being used on valuable routes to ensure these slots are maintained in future seasons. This is part of the reason why the list contains smaller airports such as Leeds and Belfast.”

As for early arrivals, London Heathrow to Delhi was hailed as the most ahead-of-schedule route. Passengers flying with Air India often landed on average 35 minutes early.

Chris Gorman, head of professional services at Esendex, said: “A delayed flight can cause a lot of anxiety, adding to an already stressful situation for many of us. Whether that’s impacting further travel plans once landed, or causing issues with accommodation, flight delays can cause havoc to travel itineraries.”

UK’s top 10 delayed flight routes

1. Leeds Bradford Airport to Lawica, Poland (36 minutes)
2. Birmingham International Airport to Dubai, UAE (30 minutes)
3. East Midlands Airport to Paris Orly, France (28 minutes)
4. Edinburgh Airport to Belfast City, Northern Ireland (27 minutes)
5. Manchester Airport to Lisbon, Portugal (25 minutes)
6. London Gatwick to Milan Malpensa, Italy (20 minutes)
7. Bristol Airport to Guernsey, UK (20 minutes)
8. Bristol Airport to Edinburgh, Scotland (19 minutes)
9. Bristol Airport to Porto, Portugal (18 minutes)
10. Belfast International to Glasgow, Scotland (17 minutes)