Regional flights added to airlines’ on-time info

Smaller jets often first to be affected when bad weather strikes.

In recent years, big U.S. airlines have touted their operational improvements to curb delays and make flight schedules more reliable.

Yet this crowing comes with a big caveat: Most of the monthly stats the large carriers report don’t include their regional operations, mostly smaller, 50- to 90-seat jets that funnel travelers to and from hubs. Regional flying now constitutes almost half of U.S. domestic air routes-and when bad weather strikes, those flights are often the first to be canceled.

Starting next year, the U.S. Department of Transportation is closing that gaping hole by requiring performance information on flights operated by a half dozen regional airlines. Regulators are

aiming to make monthly performance at the major carriers reflect how well their regional operations did.

Monthly on-time rankings “have a significant impact on a carrier’s image and brand identity, which in turn has a potential effect on the decision making of many consumers when deciding to purchase air transportation,” the DOT said Oct. 18 as it issued a final rule on the issue. The change also would more closely correlate the Big Three’s domestic on-time performance metrics with Southwest Airlines Co., JetBlue Airways Corp., and Virgin America Inc., which do nearly all their own flying. Unsurprisingly, not everyone is happy with this move toward greater transparency.

“Regional airlines remain committed to delivering safe and high-quality air service to our customers — both our airline partners and our passengers — and caution against regulations imposing increased costs without a recognized public benefit,” said Faye Black, the president of the Regional Airline Association, which represents 24 regional carriers.

The new mandate for a fuller picture of on-time performance encompasses carriers with at least 0.5 percent of domestic passenger revenue, instead of the prior 1 percent. This will cover six regional airlines that fly for the legacy carriers and Allegiant Travel Co., the Las Vegasbased ultra-low-cost carrier. The change to a 0.5 percent revenue threshold will cover 99.68 percent of flight performance data for scheduled domestic service, the government said. (Seven airlines — six of them regional — remain exempt.)

Historically, regulators haven’t required such data due to the time and cost of compiling and filing monthly records. But newer technology has largely rendered this concern moot, several interested parties told the department in comments about the rule. (The on-time performance rule accompanied other broad changes by the Obama administration aimed at protecting consumers and fostering competition among U.S. airlines.)

As a result of the reporting gap, the DOT’s monthly Air Travel Consumer Report portrayed on-time data for only 38 percent to 55 percent of domestic flights last year, the department said. This monthly release shows airline performance metrics, such as mishandled bags, flight delays, passengers “bumped” due to oversold flights, and pet injuries.

Amid poor weather or other constraints at an airport, regional flights are typically the first a carrier will sacrifice when it comes to deciding which to operate.