Manchester Airport has been ranked the worst in the UK for flight delays, according to an analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data by the Press Association. Departures from the country’s third busiest airport were an average of 19-and-a-half minutes behind schedule in 2025, longer than any other UK airport despite a 30-second improvement from the previous year.
The report prompted a warning from Rory Boland, editor of Which? Travel, who said passengers “cannot book flights from Manchester Airport with any real confidence”. He noted that the airport has ranked last in Which? Travel’s airport survey for four consecutive years, and the new CAA figures “validate why this is a particularly poor place to be stranded during delays”.
Manchester Airport hit back at the findings, calling the analysis “misleading” and arguing that it ignores important context. A spokesperson said punctuality is affected by factors outside the airport’s control, such as industrial action affecting air traffic control in Europe and adverse weather. They added that airspace restrictions above conflict zones disproportionately affected airports with significant long-haul networks, like Manchester.
Birmingham Airport had the second poorest punctuality, with an average delay of 18 minutes and 42 seconds, followed by Bournemouth Airport at 17 minutes and 18 seconds. In contrast, Liverpool John Lennon Airport, less than 30 miles from Manchester, had the most punctual flights, with an average delay of just nine minutes and 24 seconds.
The analysis considered scheduled and chartered departures from 23 UK commercial airports with at least 1,000 outbound flights in 2025, excluding cancellations. The average delay across all airports was 14 minutes and 54 seconds, down from 18 minutes and 24 seconds in 2024.
