OREANDA-NEWS. Statistics released by the Federal Government's Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics have confirmed Qantas Domestic as the most punctual major domestic airline for 2013.

The official figures also showed Qantas led the major domestic airline market every month in both on-time arrivals and departures in 2013.

This is first time Qantas, or any other airline, has been the most on time airline for 12 out of 12 months and is the fifth year in a row Qantas has recorded the best results.

Qantas Domestic Chief Executive Officer Lyell Strambi said strong on-time performance results were a contributing factor to Qantas Domestic's strong customer satisfaction levels.

“We know how important reliability and punctuality is to our customers so we are delighted to be consistently delivering on this year after year,” Mr Strambi said.

“Last year saw Qantas finish almost six percentage points ahead of Virgin in departures. This equates to around 7,200 more on time flights than our competitor carrying over a million customers.

“All airlines operate in the same weather conditions and within the same airport environment, so the difference between our on-time performance and our competitors comes down to our dedicated people who work tirelessly to get our customers to their destinations on time.

“We recognise that our operational efficiency means our customers work schedules run smoothly and holidays start sooner.”

Mr Strambi said punctuality is a key factor for the business market when it comes to choosing an airline.

“With people's hectic schedules, knowing they are going to arrive on time has never been a more important part air travel. It is also a part of what keeps customers coming back to Qantas,” he said.

“Our punctuality in addition to our fleet of aircraft, superior network, frequencies, lounges, on-time performance, and frequent flyer program, is why we continue to be the best for business and premium travellers.”

Qantas has also recently been recognised as having the world's best lounges and Economy class cabins, across both its domestic and international networks and was the only Australian carrier to feature in AirlineRatings.com's top five list of all world airlines.