Many airlines increased their flight volume in August. With more people being vaccinated and the peak of summer holidays, demand looked better than in previous months. Therefore, we wanted to know how Europe’s biggest low-cost airlines performed in August. In this context, we selected Ryanair, easyJet, Vueling, and Wizz Air — and looked at the flight volume, their punctuality, and the number of cancellations. Here are the results!
Europe’s Low-Cost Airlines — Flight Volume Benchmark
Overall, Europe’s “big four” low-cost airlines operated almost 150,000 flights in August (148,516). That’s a growth rate of 22% compared to July. However, the growth rate between the four airlines differs vastly. While easyJet and Wizz Air recorded growth rates of 30%, Ryanair and Vueling reported 15%. However, worth mentioning that Ryanair already operates at a much higher volume.
When looking at the flight volume of the four airlines, Ryanair remains Europe’s biggest low-cost airline. In August, Ryanair operated more than 70,000 flights — more than any other airline in Europe. Due to immense growth, easyJet operated more than 30,000 flights for the first time since the pandemic hit the aviation industry. In August, the British low-cost airlines operated 36,000 flights. Wizz Air ranks fourth with a flight volume slightly below 24,000, whereas Vueling operated 18,100 flights.
Europe’s Low-Cost Airline — Punctuality Benchmark
Europe’s biggest low-cost airlines continued to deliver a solid on-time performance in August. While Wizz Air achieved the weakest result with average punctuality of 87.9% in August, Ryanair and easyJet achieved a punctuality level above 90%. Moreover, Vueling continued to deliver outstanding on-time performance, resulting in punctuality of 95.3%. Moreover, worth mentioning that all airlines operated above their annual average punctuality level. Accordingly, each of the low-cost carriers further enhanced its yearly average.
Europe’s Low-Cost Airline — Cancellation Benchmark
Many airlines would be jealous when looking at the cancellation rate of Europe’s biggest low-cost carriers. The only way to classify is by using the attributes “Excellent” and “Super-Excellent.” Let’s take a look at the overall numbers first. While operating almost 150,000 flights in August, the carrier had to cancel less than 80 flights. That’s definitely more than outstanding performance. While Vueling and Wizz Air canceled slightly more than 20 flights, Ryanair’s and easyJet’s number of cancellations are below 20.
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