U.S. airline arrival delays up in December

WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- More U.S. airlines arrived late and lost luggage in December than a year earlier, the Department of Transportation said Wednesday.

Flights arrived on time an average 70.8 percent of the time, the department said in its air-travel consumer report. This was down from both December 2005's 71 percent and November's 76.5 percent marks.

The department said 89.3 checked bags were mishandled for every 1,000 passengers in December, up from both December 2005's 78-per-1,000 rate and November's 63.2 rate.

Aloha Airlines had the highest December on-time arrivals, at 93.7 percent, followed by Hawaiian Airlines, at 90.1 percent, and Delta Air Lines, at 80 percent, the department said.

SkyWest Airlines had the lowest, at 63.9 percent, followed by American Airlines' American Eagle regional carrier, at 64.3 percent, and JetBlue Airways, at 64.8 percent.

SkyWest also reported December's five most delayed flights, including four that were late 100 percent of the time, the department said.