Do early arrivals count as on time? How late does it have to be to be considered not on time? With 40% on time, how late can I expect my flight to be?
2007-09-20 08:44:43 · 5 answers · asked by Brett J 2 in Travel ➔ Air Travel
The DOT considers the 10 minute rule "on time," however, the actual airline considers it late if it comes in just one minute past the time it was supposed to. Why?
Well, an airline is given a certain amount of time to "turn" the aircraft to get it prepared for the next departure. When it comes in late, the time to turn it is reduced. So when it departs late, we have to file a report why it left late. And the reason will be called "LAE" or Late arrival of equipment.
40% on time is a horrible number. But in today's aviation world, almost all flights are delayed these days because your aircraft at some point through the day will go through a major hub that is clogged up. Such hubs that are always delayed are: ATL, LAX, JFK, and ORD. Unless your aircraft is completely avoiding those airspaces, then chances are it will be late.
At the above airports, if there is a slight shift in the winds and they have to switch active runways, that can cause delays for up to an hour! High winds, rain, and just congestion are all common factors.
So the next time you fly, just be prepared for the airline staff to say "Ground Delay." That means you will be staying a while in the departure city.
2007-09-20 09:38:02 · answer #1 · answered by Timothy 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
tonalc1 is almost correct.
In Europe and North America arrivals less than 10 minutes late are logged as on time. The blame goes to Air Traffic Control problems rather than the airline. Later than 10 minutes is logged as late.
If the airline/flight combination you have in mind only rates 40% I suggest you try a different airline.
Ian M
2007-09-20 09:27:12 · answer #2 · answered by Ian M 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It means 60% of the time, that particular flight arrives late, by any amount of time.
Early arrivals count as on time.
There's no way to know how late the flight will be until you're at the airport (or call ahead).
2007-09-20 08:48:42 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well im assuming that that is a US Air flight because only US Air would do something like that. Well dont worry about it its just say that as of now the best we can tell you is that there flight wll be 40% ontime you should be fine.
2007-09-20 09:39:31 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It means you're probably going to be late. I believe a plane has to either arrive at or leave the gate within 5 minutes of the scheduled time to be considered on time.
2007-09-20 08:56:17 · answer #5 · answered by thegubmint 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋