Middle East Airline Analysis – Overview and Contained Airlines
After initiating our new airline analysis series where we analyze the performance of leading airlines, we thought it is time to put data on a higher level. Therefore, we extracted some of the results and compiled them as a Middle East Airlines Analysis. Actually, that’s the second part, since we already published a similar report for leading European airlines. So here’s what’s contained?
- We looked at the number of flights the airlines performed from February to June 2021. Moreover, we put that into relation to more than 200 airlines.
- On top of that, we looked comapred traffic volumes to pre-COVID levels.
- Moreover, we analyzed the on-time performance and again put it into context with all major global airlines.
- And finally, we looked at the airlines’ cancellation rates.
Here are the airlines that are contained in the Middle East Airline Analysis:
| Airline | IATA |
|---|---|
| Emirates | EK |
| Etihad | EY |
| Qatar Airways | QR |
| Saudi Arabian Airlines | SV |
If you want to dive into the detailed analysis of a single airline, here are the links you need:
Middle East Airlines – Analysis by Number of Flights
Overall Results
When looking at the number of flights, the Middle East airlines are currently separated into three classes. With more than 10,000 monthly flights on average, Saudia and Qatar Airways play in the top league. Moreover, Saudi Arabian Airlines has developed itself to the biggest Middle East airline according to the number of flights. On the other hand, Emirates—the former biggest airline in the Middle East— is currently located in the midfield. The Dubai-based airline has operated 5,000 flights on average from February to June 2021. And finally, Etihad doesn’t play an essential role at the moment, with only 2,500 flights on average.
Even more critical: Saudi Arabian Airlines is the only Middle East airline that has constantly grown its flight volume from February to June. The other carriers haven’t achieved substantial growth.
Data Details
If you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 4,964 | 5,721 | 5,748 | 5,248 | 5,629 | 5,462 |
| EY | 2,311 | 2,602 | 2,699 | 2,666 | 2,539 | 2,563 |
| QR | 9,629  | 10,925 | 9,837 | 10,072 | 9,738 | 10,040 |
| SV | 9,102 | 9,782 | 11,186 | 12,091 | 12,264 | 10,885 |
Global Ranking
With the global ranking, we compare the airlines’ performance to more than 200 other airlines. Accordingly, the chart shows the position of each airline for each of the months. So it’s essential to understand that the closer an airline is positioned to the bottom, the better it is.
Due to non-existent growth, Etihad’s position among the world’s biggest airlines constantly decreased. As a result, the Abu Dhabi-based airline struggled to remain in the top 100 airlines by the number of flights. Emirates, which played a significant role in the past, also decreased in global rankings. The airline ranked ~50th in February but lost several positions.
Saudi Arabian Airlines and Qatar Airways performed slightly better than Etihad and Emirates. Nevertheless and despite their growth rate, both airlines lost positions in June. However, both airlines still rank among the world’s top 50 biggest airlines.
Data Details
If you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 53 | 53 | 52 | 60 | 64 |
| EY | 76 | 82 | 85 | 88 | 99 |
| QR | 28 | 27 | 32 | 30 | 41 |
| SV | 31 | 34 | 27 | 27 | 34 |
Middle East Airlines – Traffic Compared to Pre-COVID
The comparison of traffic volume to pre-COVID level definitely holds some of the most interesting insights. However, similar to the above explanation, we can see a separation between Qatar Airways and Saudi Arabian Airlines on the one side and Emirates and Etihad on the other side. Qatar Airways and Saudi Arabian Airlines managed to operate ~60%-~65% of their pre-COVID volume, whereas Etihad and Emirates are below 40%.
Data Details
If you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 31.5% | 34.1% | 40.9% | 41.3% | 35.5% | 36.6% |
| EY | 34.4% | 33.0% | 34.4% | 34.4% | 34.0% | 34.0% |
| QR | 63.5% | 73.7% | 65.3% | 64.7% | 69.3% | 67.3% |
| SV | 54.0% | 53.0% | 61.9% | 63.7% | 65.3% | 59.5% |
Middle East Airlines – Analysis by Punctuality
With an increasing number of flights, punctuality is also back in the spotlight for many airlines — and passengers. Therefore, we’ve analyzed the arrival on-time performance of the carriers in the corresponding months.
Overall Results
When looking at the punctuality results, it seems like we turned the above results upside down. On average, Emirates and Etihad showed the best on-time performance from February to June. On the other side, Saudi Arabian Airlines operated at a very poor punctuality level. Moreover, Saudi Arabian Airlines is the only of the four airlines that performed below the global average.
Data Details
In case you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 89.8% | 92.8% | 90.2% | 93.7% | 90.2% | 91.3% |
| EY | 87.1% | 92.8% | 83.8% | 86.7% | 85.2% | 87.1% |
| QR | 83.5% | 81.1% | 77.3% | 84.1% | 85.1% | 82.2% |
| SV | 73.6% | 73.9% | 63.2% | 71.6% | 77.2% | 71.9% |
| Global Average | 77.7% | 82.5% | 81.9% | 80.9% | 76.8% | 79.9% |
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Middle East Airlines – Analysis by Punctuality
Global Ranking
From a global point of view, the on-time performance ranking of analyzed airlines looks very interesting. Emirates is the only airline that managed to rank among the top 100 punctual airlines constantly. Saudia, on the other side, continually ranks in the last quarter.
Data Details
In case you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 49 | 47 | 71 | 58 | 54 |
| EY | 74 | 48 | 118 | 102 | 106 |
| QR | 92 | 139 | 158 | 124 | 107 |
| SV | 144 | 168 | 183 | 167 | 152 |
Middle East Airlines – Analysis by Cancellations
Overall Results
When looking at the cancellation rate of analyzed airlines, two significant aspects are apparent:
Emirates shows amazing performance
When we put together Emirates’ results in terms of cancellations, we were amazed and disappointed. We were amazed because we haven’t analyzed an airline that operated for four consecutive months without any cancellations. Therefore, Emirates’ performance from February to May was outstanding. But, unfortunately, the June results messed up the overall performance, as we will see in the below ranking.
Saudia struggles
Unfortunately, the weak performance in terms of punctuality continues when looking at the cancellation rate. On average, Saudia canceled 8.2% of its flights from February to June. Moreover, in April, the cancellation rate rose to 12.2%.
Data Details
In case you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June | Average |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 1.3% | 0.3% |
| EY | 2.0% | 0.5% | 1.4% | 3.6% | 1.0% | 1.7% |
| QR | 2.2% | 1.7% | 1.9% | 1.6% | 0.4% | 1.6% |
| SV | 8.7% | 8.6% | 12.2% | 6.9% | 4.7% | 8.2% |
| Global Avg. | 8.7% | 6.1% | 6.3% | 7.7% | 8.9% | 7.5% |
Global Ranking
Here is the global ranking of Middle East airlines in terms of cancellation rates.
Data Details
In case you want to dive into the details, here’s the underlying data of the above chart.
| Airline | February | March | April | May | June |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EK | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 118 |
| EY | 91 | 69 | 110 | 138 | 112 |
| QR | 93 | 112 | 123 | 109 | 78 |
| SV |
Middle East Airlines Ranking -What Do You Think?
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Used Data
The shown information is based on OAG data and internal data sources. Rankings only included airlines that operated more than 300 flights in the respective month. However, the global benchmark includes all tracked flights. On average, 200 airlines are included in each month’s analysis. Whenever stated, EMEA refers to airlines based in Europe, the Middle East, or Africa.
