Philippine Airlines Tops Asia-Pacific Punctuality; Where Did Singapore Airlines Rank?

The 2025 Asia-Pacific on-time performance rankings show a significant shift in regional leadership.

Philippine Airlines top ranking secured the top spot for the year, according to a report by aviation analytics firm Cirium. The carrier achieved an On-Time Performance (OTP) score of 83.12 per cent. This marks a notable jump from its seventh-place ranking in 2024, when it scored 76.06 per cent.

Asia-Pacific On-Time Leaders

National carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) was named the fourth most punctual airline in the region. The airline's Singapore Airlines punctuality score was 78.58 per cent. This represents a slight dip from the 78.67 per cent score recorded the previous year. Following the release of the Cirium On-Time Performance Review on January 2, an SIA spokesperson commented on the results. They stated that SIA remains "firmly committed to operational excellence" for customers. Philippine Airlines was followed by Air New Zealand in second place. Japan’s All Nippon Airways (ANA) took the third position for 2025. In 2024, ANA had ranked second, while Air New Zealand was fourth, just behind SIA.

Global Context and Methodology

Globally, no Singapore carrier was ranked in the top 10 for on-time performance. The world's most punctual airline was Mexico’s Aeromexico world's most punctual, retaining its top spot with a 90.02 per cent score. Saudi Arabia’s national carrier, Saudia, placed second with 86.53 per cent. Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) was third, scoring 86.09 per cent.

Defining On-Time Performance

Cirium's methodology defines a passenger flight as on time if it arrives or departs at the gate within 15 minutes of its scheduled time. This is the industry standard for on-time arrival departure tracking. The data for the rankings is consolidated from more than 600 sources of real-time flight information.

On-time performance is a critical metric for airline operational excellence. It indicates an airline's reliability and efficiency. Good OTP helps reduce costs and enhances customer satisfaction.

Airport Punctuality and Regional Hubs

The Cirium report also ranked the most punctual airports by size. Singapore's Changi Airport did not feature in any of the airport rankings. For large airports (25 million to 40 million outgoing passengers), the winner was Santiago’s Arturo Merino Benitez International Airport in Chile, with an 87.04 per cent score. Panama City’s Tocumen International Airport won the medium airport category (15 million to 25 million outgoing passengers) again. The most punctual small airport (five million to 15 million outgoing passengers) was Jose Joaquin de Olmedo International Airport in Guayaquil, Ecuador. This consistency highlights the importance of efficient ground operations. Maintaining high punctuality requires sophisticated network planning and coordination. For more commercial aviation news, visit https://flying.flights.

• Philippine Airlines secured the top Asia-Pacific punctuality ranking for 2025 with an 83.12% OTP score.
• Singapore Airlines ranked fourth in the region, recording a slight dip to 78.58% from 78.67% the prior year.
• Globally, Aeromexico was the most punctual airline, achieving a 90.02% on-time performance score.
• Cirium's OTP metric requires flights to arrive or depart within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.