It's been a rough takeoff to 2025 for many European air passengers.
The first five months of the year were marred by tens of thousands of delays and cancellations.
A new analysis of Europe's 20 busiest airlines ranked their performance, revealing which ones had the most turbulent starts.
Cancellations: Finnair, KLM and BA report worst rates
Dutch carrier KLM scrapped the most flights between January and May (2,760), followed by British Airways (1,763) and Germany's Lufthansa (1,757), says the report by flight compensation company FlightRight.
Raw numbers aside, the highest rate of flights scrapped was on Finnair: 3.35% out of a total of over 43,000 trips.
KLM is second (2.04%), trailed by British Airways (1.58%), Ireland's Aer Lingus and Swiss International (1.29%).
Some of the most common reasons for flight cancellations include severe weather, operational issues, like crew shortages or mechanical problems, as well as strikes and runway closures.
The relatively new Italian carrier ITA proved to be one of the most reliable companies, with just a single cancellation in 2025.
Turkish Airlines also excelled, with only three flights called off, followed by LOT Polish Airlines (7) and Spain's flag carrier, Iberia (12).
Delays: Portugal's Tap reports worst rate in Europe
Tap Portugal has had the worst record in 2025: a staggering 37% of its flights in the first five months landed at least fifteen minutes late.
Ryanair had the highest number of delayed flights overall: 77,000, followed by EasyJet at over 26,600.
But they operated many more flights than major airlines, so their likelihood of landing late is actually lower.
Fewer cancellations but more delays in 2025
Cancellations in 2025 significantly decreased compared to last year, according to FlightRight data shared with Euronews.
The first five months of 2025 saw 32% fewer service suspensions, bringing the total down to 0.61% of flights affected.
Last year was particularly turbulent strike-wise, marked by industrial action at Lufthansa and multiple air traffic controller strikes in France.
So, is it all good news? Not really. Delays actually increased by 54% in 2025. In general, 16% of all flights from the top 20 European airlines were affected.
Severe weather is largely to blame. January saw major storms, like Éowyn, bringing strong winds and disrupting air traffic, especially in Ireland and the UK, along with heavy snowfall in Germany.
On top of that, a massive power outage hit Spain, Portugal and southwest France in April, leading to several airport closures.
Finally, air traffic volume in Europe grew by approximately 3.7% in early 2025 compared to 2024, according to EuroControl.
"This surge in flights placed additional pressure on air traffic control systems and airport infrastructures, leading to more congestion and delays," FlightRight commented.
What compensation can you get in case of flight disruption?
Air passengers in the EU are entitled to compensation if there is a delay of at least three hours.
The compensation is based on the flight distance rather than the ticket price: €250 for flights up to 1,500 km, €400 for flights of over 1,500 km within the EU (or 1,500–3,500 km internationally), and €600 for flights of over 3,500 km.
However, exceptions include extraordinary circumstances like air traffic control strikes or weather-related disruptions. No compensation is due in these cases.
Having said that, airlines are still required to help out passengers with alternative solutions like rerouting or hotel accommodations.
At least 75% of passenger claims could be rejected under new plans
FlightRight, as well as BEUC - the European Consumer Organisation - have criticised recent plans by the Polish presidency of the Council of the EU to change air passenger rights.
A Council spokesperson told Euronews that under current plans the compensation would be granted for delays of "four hours (for journeys below 3500km) and 6 hours (for journeys above 3500km), with a €300 compensation for journeys below 3500 km and €500 for journeys above 3,500km".
Also, the list of "extraordinary circumstances" - exempting airlines from compensation - might be expanded to include the death of a crew member or its illness, but "only when it happens outside the operating air carrier’s home bases or due to a pandemic."
The source said "negotiations over the texts are still ongoing and will need an agreement with the EU Parliament before there is a final agreement at EU level."
When is the proposal expected to pass?
Euronews understands that the Council might approve the proposal on 5 June.
If that happens, the European Parliament will update its position on the plans on 24 June.
According to the authorities, the proposal to tweak passenger rights comes from a EU Commission study which reportedly showed that air carriers might be more inclined to cancel a flight if they know they might have compensation problems, underlying that, in some cases, cancellations might be economically more convenient for them, if passenger rights stay as they are.
FlightRight warned that if the proposal were to pass, "between 75% and 85% of current compensation claims will be rejected."
