The Top 3 Most Reliable British Airlines in 2025
We unveil the top 3 most reliable airlines in the UK for 2025. Discover the carriers with the best on-time and cancelled flight track records.
A delayed flight is annoying, and a cancelled flight is even worse. To minimise the instances of disruption on your next flight, we put together a list of the most reliable airlines (UK edition) so that you can be a little more prepared next time you take to the skies.
As part of a larger study on the overall Top 10 UK Airlines, we soon discovered which UK airlines arrive on time most often and which have the lowest percentages of cancelled flights. In all, we looked at nearly 1.5 million flights in 2023 and 2024.
With special consideration given to airlines with the most annual flights, we found that in 2024, the percentages varied widely:
- The on-time percentage in the UK ranges from as high as 75.7% to as low as 55.4%.
- The cancellation percentage can be as low as 0.02% and as high as 12.2%.
Armed with this information, it was a logical next step to determine the most reliable airlines UK. Let’s have a look at the top 3:
The First UK Airline for Reliability – Jet2
To take the top spot in the competitive category, Jet2 had the second-highest on-time percentage in 2023 at 75.75%. In 2024, the airline didn’t fare as well with an on-time percentage of 67.4%. While not the best of the bunch for delays, Jet2 excels at other things.
Cancelled flights are extremely uncommon with this budget-friendly airline. In both years, their cancelled flight percentage was a mere 0.02% – by far the lowest overall. It’s safe to say that your chances of having your flight cancelled entirely are extremely low when you choose Jet2.
Second Most Reliable – easyJet
Pretty much everyone in the UK has heard of easyJet, and so many people choose this low-cost carrier annually that it takes the top spot for the number of flights in 2023 and 2024.
Add that to solid scores in low instances of cancelled flights and decent on-time percentages, and you’ll see why easyJet is among the most reliable airlines in the UK.
As for the actual numbers, the low-cost carrier scored well overall for cancellations with 1.65% in 2023 and 1.1% in 2024. Although not as reliable as Jet2, it’s still quite unlikely you’ll encounter an easyJet flight cancellation.
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For delays, the results weren’t as good. About one-third of all flights with this carrier don’t arrive on time, meaning by this metric, easyJet is actually below average.
The bottom line: although you might be a little late, you’ll arrive at your destination.
Third Most Reliable – Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic is our third-place winner, although, for cancelled flights in 2023, the airline was able to secure the second-place spot with only 0.3% of flights cancelled. That climbed in 2024 to 1.7%, landing Virgin in fifth place.
Virgin Atlantic also features in the top 3 for the lowest percentage of delays in both years. In 2023, their on-time percentage was 75.72% (#3), and in 2024, it was 70.5%, which was enough to be second-best.
This clearly demonstrates a decline in on-time performance year-over-year. A significantly lower on-time rate in 2024 compared to 2023 actually increased Virgin Atlantic’s overall position.
The only reason Virgin doesn’t appear higher in the list is their size. They don’t run nearly as many flights annually as easyJet or Jet2.
Other Interesting Findings
When we look at the overall numbers, some of the other notable findings can get lost. Here are a few highlights that emerged from our research into the 2024 data:
- British Airways had the second-highest number of flights after easyJet.
- Eastern Airways encountered the most cancelled flights (as a percentage of total flights), with a score of 12.2%. Eastern also operates the fewest number of flights.
- In 2024, Loganair had the best on-time percentage of 75.7%.
- The worst on-time percentage in 2024 belongs to TUI Airways, scoring a dismal 55.4%. That means passengers can expect almost half of TUI flights to be delayed! Alternatively, their 2024 cancellation rate was only 0.3%.
- Wizz Air UK also had a relatively low cancellation rate in 2024 of 0.8%.
Most Reliable UK Airlines for 2025 – The Data
Below are our overall points totals and individual airline findings for 2024 to show you exactly how the 10 carriers we reviewed stack up most recently:
| Airline | Total Score (2023 +2024) | Total Flights | On-Time Rate | Cancellation Rate |
1 | Jet2 | 51 | 114,600 | 67.4% | 0.02% |
2 | EasyJet | 47 | 391,784 | 66.1% | 1.1% |
3 | Virgin Atlantic | 42 | 25,137 | 70.50% | 1.7% |
4 | British Airways | 39 | 354,658 | 66.8% | 2.4% |
5 | Blue Islands | 32 | 13,042 | 70% | 4.3% |
6 | Loganair | 37 | 58,185 | 75.7% | 3.7% |
7 | Wizz Air UK | 34 | 58,648 | 68.4% | 0.8% |
8 | TUI Airways | 20 | 62,983 | 55.4% | 0.3% |
9 | Aurigny Air Services | 17 | 11.642 | 61,1% | 5.7% |
10 | Eastern Airways | 16 | 6,031 | 64% | 12.2% |
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Conclusion
The bottom line is that when you need the most reliable airlines, UK passengers should try to stick with Jet2, easyJet, and Virgin Atlantic whenever possible. Smaller regional carriers like Blue Islands and Loganair have good numbers for on-time flights, but fall short with flight cancellations.
The reality is that any flight can be delayed or cancelled. All you can do is aim for the best options according to this list and keep your fingers crossed!
Author:
Amy Lancelotte
Job/Position: Senior Writer & Content Strategist
Amy Lancelotte is a Senior Content Writer and editorial contributor at AirAdvisor with over seven years of experience producing research-based articles for international audiences. Her work focuses on travel, aviation, and air passenger rights, with an emphasis on factual accuracy, verified data, and clear, reader-first explanations.
