Do flights take off on time at Malaga airport?

Málaga Airport is breaking records with historic numbers in passenger and plane movements. But how punctual are the flights departing from what has been, in this first quarter of the year, the third busiest Aena infrastructure in Spain, only preceded by Madrid and Barcelona? A new report by Airhelp, a tech company that enhances passenger experience during potential flight disruptions, answers this question. The data on the state of air traffic in Spain and the performance of Spanish airports with more than 200 flights per month in the first three months of the year, that is, 23 air facilities, indicate that Málaga Airport is below the middle of the table and that, among the large airports, it has the lowest punctuality rate. Specifically, it ranks 14th, with Lanzarote, La Coruña, Vigo, Gran Canaria, Tenerife Norte, Fuerteventura, Ceuta, Santiago, and La Palma below it.

The data provided by Airhelp shows that during this first quarter, 2,223,000 passengers flew from Málaga across the 54 operating airlines connecting the Costa del Sol with 148 cities worldwide in the 16,900 flights operated during this period. Out of this total number of passengers, nearly 1.5 million had their flights depart on time, which brings the flight punctuality rate to 64.1%, with passengers departing from Asturias being the luckiest. Of the 159,000 passengers who took a flight in Oviedo, 81.6% of them departed on time. Following this, Granada-Jaén and Ibiza airports rank as the second and third most punctual airports of this first quarter of the year, with punctuality rates of 79.7% and 74.6%, respectively. Comparing with the airports preceding Málaga, Madrid has a punctuality rate of 65.9% and Barcelona 67.3%.

The study also warns that most of these delays did not exceed three hours. In this regard, it notes that of the 756,000 passengers who experienced some departure issues from Málaga, only 18,900 were entitled to compensation for delays over three hours, cancellations, or missed connections due to a prior disruption.

Globally, the report states that over 27 million passengers took a flight from a Spanish airport between January and March. According to data provided by the passenger rights advocacy company, approximately one in three flights (34.4%) were delayed or canceled, affecting close to nine million travelers. "These data reflect a serious deterioration in air traffic in the country compared to last year. In the first quarter of 2025, more than 82% of trips were made on schedule, halving the number of affected passengers to 4.6 million, compared to current figures," they highlight to emphasize that "however, it is surprising that despite the delays, only 185,000 passengers are entitled to compensation."

Furthermore, AirHelp has also studied the performance of the main Spanish airports: Madrid and Barcelona. These airports account for 46% of passenger traffic in Spain, transporting 6.8 million passengers from the capital and 5.5 million from Barcelona. Of these, only 66.3% in Madrid and 68.9% in Barcelona departed on time. "Analyzing these data and noting the decline in punctuality at Spanish airports, AirHelp considers it necessary to emphasize the importance of having regulations that govern passenger rights. A regulation that is also currently under review in the European Union."

They remind that under the current regulation, passengers are entitled to compensation of up to 600 euros in case of delays exceeding three hours upon arrival, cancellations without prior notice within 14 days before the departure date, or denied boarding due to airline 'overbooking'. However, this compensation depends on the reason for the flight disruption. For instance, adverse weather conditions or medical emergencies can exempt the airline from its obligation to compensate. Conversely, in the case of airline staff strikes, even if announced, passengers have the right to file claims.

Additionally, if additional expenses arise during the wait due to the flight disruption (such as food, accommodation, or those related to lost luggage), the company must also cover them. Also, in the event of changes to the scheduled timetable, airlines must offer an alternative flight, which the passenger may reject if they do not wish to continue their journey. In this case, they may request a full refund of the ticket.

The regulations currently being considered by the European Commission will extend the delay thresholds that entitle passengers to compensation, review the amounts of these compensations, and redefine the cases considered as extraordinary circumstances that exempt airlines from such obligations.