A flight being delayed, or even worse, completely cancelled is a holidaymaker's worst nightmare. 

Thankfully, new analysis of 1.5million flights across 2023 and 2204 has revealed the UK's most reliable airlines.

Budget carrier Jet2 was crowned the very best by AirAdvisor and boasts an impressive cancellation rate of just 0.02 per cent.

The airline serves 17million passengers a year and is based at 13 airports across the UK. 

It cancelled fewer than two in every 10,000 flights despite disruptions including strikes and poor weather. 

As for Jet2's on-time arrival rate, it had a strong 75.75 per cent in 2023 and dropped slightly to 67.4 per cent the following year. 

Another budget airline, easyJet, ranked in second place and proved to be consistently reliable with a cancellation rate of 1.65 per cent in 2023 and 1.1 per cent in 2024.

It's the UK's largest airline in terms of the number of flights it provides and last year saw 391,784 journeys.

However, easyJet's on-time performance did decrease from 68.1 per cent to 60.5 per cent, though it remains strong compared to others. 

Virgin Atlantic placed third and has a cancellation rate of 1.7 per cent, though this rose from a near perfect 0.3 per cent. 

Britain's second-largest carrier boasts a strong on-time rate, too and in 2023 75.7 per cent of its flights were reliable. This dropped to 70.5 per cent in 2024.

British Airways ranked fourth with a 2.4 per cent cancellation rate and 70 per cent on -time rate.

Meanwhile, Blue Islands came fifth, and Loganair followed in sixth.

Anton Radchenko, Aviation Expert & Founder at AirAdvisor, said: 'As Christmas travel ramps up, reliability becomes more than just a number; it is the key to keeping holidays intact. 

'When demand peaks, even small operational inefficiencies can ripple through entire networks. 

'Travellers who choose airlines with proven reliability records dramatically reduce the odds of a ruined trip.'

Earlier this year, the world’s safest airlines in 2025 were revealed by Airlineratings.com.

Topping the list for legacy airlines is Air New Zealand, which is renowned for its high safety standards, quality pilot training and young modern fleet. The flag carrier also took the crown last year and in 2022, with Australian airline Qantas winning in 2023.

‘Only 1.5 points separated the top two airlines,’ said Airlineratings.com CEO Sharon Petersen. ‘Air New Zealand’s younger fleet gave it the edge over Qantas this year.’

The airline has a perfect seven-star safety rating from Airlineratings.com.