JetLite tops flight cancellation list, GoAir lowest

Low-cost airline JetLite topped the flight cancellation list in December with 3.2 per cent, while budget airline GoAir had the lowest cancellation rate at 0.5 per cent in the same month, according to DGCA estimates.

Jetlite was followed by the all-business class Paramount Airways at three per cent while the overall industry average of the domestic airlines was at 1.8 per cent during December 2009.

As per the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, domestic air operators cancelled over 40 per cent cent of their flights for commercial reasons - non availability of aircraft or crew.

Technical grounds accounted for 36 per cent cancellations while weather was responsible for 23.9 per cent cancellations during the month, it added.

"There is a very thin line between commercial and technical reasons. At times, technical reasons spill over the commercial side of the operations, and thus a cancellation is attributed to commercial reasons," an industry official said.

Another private carrier Kingfisher, which returned 19 aircraft in a span of 10 months last year and subsequently reduced the capacity to a significant extent, cancelled 2.1 per cent of its total flights during the month last year.

While Jet Airways' flight cancellations rate was at 2.1 per cent, national air-carrier Air India cancelled 1.7 per cent of its total flights during the period.

SpiceJet and IndiGo were the two other airlines that posted minimum cancellation rate at 0. 6 per cent each.

At the same time, in terms of on-time performance, the overall OTP across domestic air-carriers stood at 71.5 per cent in December.

Paramount Airways had the highest OTP at 84.7 per cent, while JetLite had the lowest OTP at 56 per cent.