The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has released its Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR) for April 2024, detailing airline operational data on on-time performance, mishandled baggage, and mishandled wheelchairs and scooters. The ATCR aims to provide consumers with information about the quality of airline services.

In April 2024, the cancellation rate was 0.7%, a decrease from both April 2023's rate of 1.7% and pre-pandemic April 2019's rate of 2.4%. The DOT expects airlines to operate flights as scheduled and provide promised services when cancellations or delays occur due to airline issues. As part of a two-year effort to improve passenger experience, the ten largest U.S. airlines now guarantee meals and free rebooking on the same airline; nine also guarantee hotel accommodations.

April saw an increase in flight operations with 615,695 flights operated, up by 5.05% year-over-year but down by 1.24% from March 2024. Of the 619,920 scheduled domestic flights in April, only 0.7% were cancelled.

On-time arrival rates improved in April with reporting marketing carriers achieving an average of 80.4%, higher than both March’s rate of 78.7% and April last year's rate of 75.7%. Allegiant Air had the highest on-time arrival rate at 85.8%, followed by Delta Air Lines Network at 84.8%, and Hawaiian Airlines at 84%.

Flight cancellations also decreased in April with reporting carriers cancelling just 0.7% of scheduled domestic flights compared to March’s rate of 0.9% and last year's April rate of 1.7%. Delta Air Lines Network had the lowest cancellation rate at just 0.3%.

Complaints about airline service remain high, primarily due to an outdated consumer complaint application system that is being modernized with support from a Technology Modernization Fund (TMF). This modernization aims to improve customer experience and oversight capabilities.

Tarmac delays increased slightly in April with twelve delays exceeding three hours on domestic flights compared to six such delays in March.

Mishandled baggage rates improved slightly in April at a reported rate of .46%, lower than March's .52% and last year's .55%. Similarly, mishandling rates for wheelchairs and scooters also showed improvement.

Bumping or oversales data indicated a slight decrease for Q1-2024 at a bumping rate of .27 per every ten thousand passengers compared to Q1-2023’s .29.

There were zero incidents involving animals during air transport reported in April which remained consistent with previous months’ reports.

Consumers can file complaints online or mail them directly to the Office of Aviation Consumer Protection.

The DOT under the Biden-Harris Administration continues efforts toward consumer protection through new regulations requiring automatic cash refunds for owed passengers and protections against surprise fees among other initiatives aimed at improving air travel experiences especially for individuals with disabilities.