Overview
- The Flightright Index, published Wednesday, evaluated 20 major European carriers using millions of flight records plus a passenger survey to score reliability, compensation payment behaviour, and customer satisfaction.
- Austrian Airlines ranked highest with 3.04 out of 5, while Aer Lingus placed last with 1.79 and Air Europa and Vueling also scored poorly.
- No airline reached a four-star overall benchmark and the index applied clear quantitative thresholds for cancellations and delays, for example treating delays under 15 minutes as on time.
- Payment behaviour was a key weakness: Flightright measured how often airlines paid compensation directly to the portal and how many days they took after a request, finding Aer Lingus, Air Europa and Vueling earned only one star in that category.
- Flightright warned the results matter for policy by saying proposed EU changes could remove compensation rights for many travelers and the index underlines how slow payments and poor service can turn a disrupted trip into a lasting hardship for passengers.