On the way to this year's vacation, travelers in Germany once again needed a lot of patience. Compared to last year, there were no longer any Corona restrictions on travel and significantly more passengers were welcomed by the airlines.
At the same time, due to the increased travel volume, there were also more vacationers who were affected by delays or cancellations. Airhelp, the world's largest organization for air passenger rights, has analyzed which airlines brought the most passengers from Germany to their destination with delays.
Lufthansa passengers had to expect the most delays
With around 9,6 million delayed passengers, Lufthansa is by far the top of the ranking. The low-cost airline Ryanair follows in second place, with around 1,6 million passengers affected by delays and cancellations. SunExpress also performed poorly this year with around 1,2 million delayed passengers and came third in the comparison.
- Lufthansa 9,6 million (36,2 percent)
- Ryanair 1,6 million (34,8 percent)
- SunExpress 1,2 million (44,9 percent)
- Turkish Airlines 1,1 million (54,6 percent)
- Pegasus Airlines 0,74 million (58 percent)
- Air Dolomiti 0,64 million (48,7 percent)
- Easyjet 0,52 million (32,5 percent)
- Wizz Air 0,5 million (33,3 percent)
- British Airways 0,47 million (38,9 percent)
- Eurowings 0,44 million (5,02 percent)
The German airline was already at the top of the negative ranking last year
Compared to last year, the situation at Lufthansa has not improved. In 2022, Lufthansa also took first place with 5,5 million delayed passengers. This year there are even 9,6 million delayed passengers. This means that the percentage of delayed passengers remains the same as the previous year at around 36 percent.
The trend for cancellations and delays at Ryanair has worsened. The low-cost airline continues to occupy second place in the ranking. However, there are now 1,6 million delayed passengers, 500.000 more than a year ago. Last year, Turkish Airlines was in third place among airlines with the most delayed passengers. This year, the airline is in fourth place, although significantly more travelers had to contend with delays and cancellations. In 2022, 46 percent of passengers departed late; this year the figure is 54,6 percent.
Lufthansa has to pay most of the compensation
If passengers are affected by a delay or cancellation of more than three hours, they are entitled to compensation in accordance with EU Directive EC 261 if the delay lies with the respective airline. Most travelers from Germany who are entitled to compensation flew with Lufthansa this year. Around 0,59 million holidaymakers are entitled to compensation. This means that around six percent of all delays are the airline's own fault. Ryanair took second place, with 0,13 million travelers having to wait at least three hours for their flight or not being able to take it at all. This year, Eurowings is also among the top three airlines with the most self-inflicted delays and cancellations, with 0,11 million travelers claiming compensation.
- Lufthansa 590.000 passengers (6,2 percent)
- Ryanair 130.000 passengers (7,9 percent)
- Eurowings 110.000 passengers (24,6 percent)
- Wizz Air 50.000 passengers (10,2 percent)
- British Airways 48.000 passengers (10,3 percent)
The number of delays caused by airlines themselves is increasing
When compared with the data from 2022, it becomes clear that the number of passengers who are entitled to compensation has increased significantly and therefore more delays and cancellations caused by the airline were the problem this year. In addition to Lufthansa, there have been many self-inflicted problems, especially with the low-cost airline Ryanair. While around three percent of delayed passengers were entitled to compensation in 2022, this year there were more than twice as many at around 7,9 percent. At Eurowings, the proportion of self-inflicted delays and cancellations has fallen significantly compared to the previous year (61 percent) and is now around 24,6 percent. British Airways is also recording 10,3 percent fewer delays and cancellations this year compared to the data from 2022. Last year, at a total of 18 percent, there were around 8 percent more affected passengers than this year.
“This year there has been a clear upturn in the desire to travel based on the increased number of passengers. However, with the increase in passengers, the proportion of delays and cancellations caused by the airlines themselves has also increased. Compared to 2022, the number of travelers entitled to compensation has increased significantly. In total, around 1,4 million air travelers can and should assert their claims against the airlines. Airhelp supports all passengers in receiving the payments they are entitled to,” said Tomasz Pawliszyn, CEO of AirHelp.