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For the 8th year in a row, airline data company Cirium has named Copa the most punctual airline in Latin America for 2021.

The Panama-based airline posted an on-time performance of 90.25%, covering a total of 44,126 flights in 2021, which was the best in the Americas, Cirium reports. Copa operates an extensive network of connections through Tocumen International Airport, including 70 destinations in 30 countries, which makes the performance particularly impressive.

For people who need to regularly fly in and out of Panama, it’s important to have a reliable airline focused on keeping its schedule.

“The punctuality of our flights and safety of the crew and passengers are two of the main differentiating elements of Copa Airlines, which, with this distinction, maintains its position as the only airline in the world to lead a region for so many years in a row,” Copa CEO Pedro Heilbron said.  

Cirium also noted that Copa has bounced back from the pandemic quicker than many airlines. 

“Copa Airlines, an airline that was close to a complete shutdown at the start of the pandemic, is making a strong recovery and operating its expanding flight schedules at a very high level of on-time performance,” the publication wrote.

Copa beat Aerolineas Argentinas (89.2%) and Azul (88.9%) for the Latin America title. Delta was the top performer in North America with an 87.7% on-time performance. 

Cirium’s on-time performance reporting for airlines and airports is the industry standard and goes back 13 years. Cirium didn’t report data during the height of the pandemic disruptions, but resumed reporting in June 2021, as flight volumes returned, the company said. Cirium’s on-time performance analysis is based on flight data from over 600 sources of real-time flight information.”For an airline to be on time, their flights must arrive at the airport gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled arrival time, Cirium says.

Here is a video Copa produced to commemorate the achievement:

Photo credit: https://www.instagram.com/iaryrealtor/