Around 26,7 million people flew from German airports this winter - 30,6 percent of whom were affected by delays or cancellations. In December the rate reached its absolute peak at 39,7 percent.

Passengers who flew from Stuttgart to Milan (Linate) traveled most punctually: the delay and cancellation rate was only 5,2 percent. This emerges from a current study by AirHelp. For this purpose, flight cancellations and delays in the winter months from November 2023 to February 2024 were examined.

The Stuttgart-Milan route is one of the most punctual flight routes this winter

Passengers who traveled from Stuttgart to Milan (Linate) during the winter months took off by far the most punctually: only 5,2 percent of passengers on the route were affected by flight disruptions - the lowest rate in the study. But passengers who flew from Frankfurt am Main to Linz in Austria were also comparatively spared from delays. Here, 6,5 percent of passengers departed late. The Düsseldorf-Madrid (Barajas) flight route follows in third place with a proportion of 7,4 percent of delayed passengers.

Anyone who flew from Stuttgart to Makedonia Airport in Thessaloniki also had to expect minor delays during the German winter. On the route, the proportion of passengers delayed and affected by flight cancellations was 7,8 percent. The rate for passengers who flew from Düsseldorf to Thessaloniki is just as low. However, a route within the country comes in fifth place: on the Dortmund-Munich route, 8,3 percent of all passengers experienced problems.

4,9 percent of passengers were unable to start their trip due to cancellation

In total, almost 8,2 million travelers in Germany were confronted with flight problems this winter - 1,3 million (4,9 percent) of all passengers had their flights canceled. If you focus exclusively on flight cancellations, the Berlin-Madrid (Barajas) and Düsseldorf-Madrid (Barajas) routes will land in the first two places this winter. Here the proportion was only 0,1 or 0,2 percent. Passengers from BER to London Stansted Airport also hardly had to expect any cancellations: the failure rate there was less than 0,3 percent. This puts the flight route in third place.

Passengers had to be the most patient on the Frankfurt-Abuja route

79,6 percent – ​​this is the proportion of all passengers who had to expect flight cancellations and delays from Frankfurt am Main to Abuja in Nigeria. This means that the route brings up the rear in the investigation. In second to last place is Düsseldorf-Beirut with a share of 78 percent, followed by Berlin-Cairo (68,9 percent).

“As has been shown, passengers at German airports have to be prepared for problems and show strong nerves not only in summer but also in winter. Our research has shown that more than 937.000 passengers who departed from Germany during these winter months are entitled to compensation. We therefore encourage all affected passengers to stand up for their rights. They can check their claim free of charge on our website before contacting the airlines directly or with our help. We also recommend passengers to start their winter trip in February. The chances of a relaxed trip are comparatively good during this month,” emphasizes Tomasz Pawliszyn, CEO of AirHelp.

Passengers have these rights according to EC 261

Flight cancellations and delays can entitle you to compensation payments of up to 600 euros per passenger. The amount of the compensation payment is calculated based on the length of the flight route. The legal right to compensation depends on the actual duration of the delay at the destination and the reason for the canceled or delayed flight. Affected passengers can enforce their claim for compensation retroactively, up to three years after their flight date.