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Good news if you're flying on the biggest airline serving Minnesota: it's now ranked as the number-one airline in the country for on-time flights.

It's the largest airline in Minnesota-- and it's now #1 for on-time flights

That's the word this week about Delta Airlines, which was just ranked as the best airline not just in the country, but in North America when it comes to online flights. The award, from aviation analytics firm, Cirium, also named Delta as a winner of its Platinum Award for global operational excellence, Delta said.

Delta was the most on-time North American airline in 2022. Of Delta’s 1,004,684 flights last year tracked by Cirium, 83.63% arrived on time, Cirium reported.

 

Delta said its on-time performance far exceeded North American industry benchmarks, the Cirium report noted. Of the more than 5 million flights tracked by Cirium in 2022, 71.91% arrived on time. (In case you're curious, Cirium defines an 'on-time flight' as one that arrives within 15 minutes of its scheduled gate arrival.) Delta’s on-time arrival percentage was 3.17% higher than its nearest North American competitor.

This isn't the first time Delta has been recognized for its on-time performance, either. In addition to winning Cirium's Platinum Award in 2021, Delta also was ranked second in the Punctuality League survey of airlines with an on-time percentage of 88.4. (That survey is an annual report compiled by U.K.-based travel analyst OAG, a provider of worldwide flight information.)

Delta has some serious history in Minnesota

Delta is, of course, the largest airline serving Minnesota, and has a major hub at the largest airport in Minnesota, the Minneapolis - St. Paul International Airport (MSP) in Bloomington.

And I still kind of think of Delta as a 'Minnesota' airline, even though it's not headquartered here. Its corporate headquarters are in Atlanta, but since Delta merged with Minnesota's Northwest Airlines back in 2008, Delta still has a major influence and presence here in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

Delta also offers flights out of Rochester

It's also impressive to note that you don't have to drive up Highway 52 to MSP to fly on the airline with the second-best on-time ranking, either. Delta offers connecting flights to its main hub Atlanta via MSP from right here in the Med City at Rochester International Airport.

As I mentioned earlier, Delta merged with Minneapolis-based Northwest Airlines back in 2008. Northwest was one of those brands that were once huge here in Minnesota (kind of like Dayton's also was) but that now no longer exists. Which is the same for many of the following famous brands. Keep scrolling to see how many YOU remember!

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50 Famous Brands That No Longer Exist