Symmetre

Perhaps, but we may need to agree to disagree on that. I mean no disrespect to anyone here, but considerations like delays in the customs hall, or the comparable OTP of flights that one had no intention of taking anyway because they leave at 6:00 am on a Sunday morning, really are peripheral to the primary discussion here, which is - why do less than half of AC's flights arrive on time?

Per the August numbers that rankourabu posted upthread, AC's OTP once again lags way behind that of its competitors. This time around, they rank 21st of 23 airlines listed with a grim 48.9% OTP. The next carrier ahead of them - a discount operation at that - has an OTP of 61.6%. That's not a minor gap. I could entertain discussion of "what if it was only a 5% gap" if that were the case. But it's not. AC is consistently at the back of the pack when it comes to getting their customers to destination on time, and the situation never seems to improve.

Over the years there have been excuses about cold Canadian weather and runway construction at Pearson, there have been speculations about how they calculate block times and how OTP should be determined ... it's admittedly enjoyable discussion, but little more than hair-splitting since none of it really explains why The Gosh Darn Bestest Airline In The Whole Wide World According to Skytrax can't meet a schedule of its own manufacture. Other airlines manage to do this more often than not, including those operating fleets in and out of hubs that suffer winter weather on par or worse than what we see at AC's hubs.

Which is why I think we may need to agree to disagree here. To my mind, when AC publishes a schedule they set an expectation. Over time, failing to meet that expectation - which a sub-50% OTP indicates happens more often than not - says there are real problems which are not being addressed.