Nothing wreaks havoc on a meticulously planned vacation like an ingloriously delayed flight. Missed connections, subpar standby seating, and sleeping on airport floors are among the worst ways to kick off a bucket-list trip to an iconic vacation destination like Paris. One of the best ways to avoid frustrating delays is to book with a reliable carrier like Icelandair, Europe's most punctual airline, which boasts a wildly impressive track record. The Nordic carrier consistently ranks among Europe's most on-time
airlines, particularly when it comes to the harrowing summer travel season. According to a report from aviation analytics firm Cirium, 81.4% of Icelandair's July 2025 flights arrived on time, slightly lower than its previous high of 84.08% in June.
For a flight to be considered on time, it must arrive or depart from the destination airport within 15 minutes of its scheduled time. In the commercial airline industry, this is known as on-time performance, or OTP. In its report, Cirium's analytics tracked OTP specifically for arriving flights at destination airports. Icelandair's high OTP is even more impressive considering the staggering number of cancellations airlines have faced this year. In July, a whopping 19,923 flights were cancelled in North America, while 10,640 flights were cancelled in Europe. Yet Icelandair still shone, touching down on time for the vast majority of its 514,000 passengers over 4,000 flights, making it one of Europe's most dependable airlines.
Europe's second-most-punctual airline is another Nordic heavyweight, Scandinavian Airlines, or SAS, which made 81% of its flights on time. In fact, SAS ranked No. 1 globally in May 2025, beating out the consistently punctual Aeromexico, Cirium's 2024 pick for the world's most on-time global airline. Rounding out the top five were Turkish Airlines, Finnair, and Iberia.
Read more: The 5 Best Airlines That Fly To Hawaii, According To Reviews
Icelandair's Popular Travel Hub Serves 143 Weekly Flights Through Several U.S. Airports
Icelandair may be a European airline, but it brings great news for U.S. travelers who don't want to risk losing a nonrefundable deposit for one of Rick Steves' best-selling European tours because of a late landing. The airline operates 143 weekly round-trip flights serving 13 U.S. airports from its bustling travel hub at Reykjavik-Keflavik Airport (KEF).
Passengers flying Icelandair will find weekly arrivals and departures at some of the country's busiest gateways. Boston Logan International (BOS) and Seattle-Tacoma (SEA) each field 21 weekly flights, New York's JFK has 19, and Chicago O'Hare and Washington, D.C.'s Dulles International each have 14. Icelandair is also an official airline partner with Southwest Airlines, giving Southwest travelers access to five airports in Iceland, as well as 34 destinations across Europe, including iconic cities like Paris, London, Rome, and Barcelona.
In addition to Icelandair's promising punctuality, transatlantic travelers have even more incentive to fly with the 85-year-old airline. According to Icelandair's website, passengers flying between Europe and the United States can add a stopover in Iceland at no extra cost. Considering that Iceland boasts one of Europe's best road trips, showing off seafront villages, glaciers, and fjords, it's an offer that's hard to pass up.
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Read the original article on Islands.
