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During the first nine months of the year, airlines posted their best on-time performance since 2003, according to new numbers released by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
Domestic carriers reported an on-time arrival rate of 79.6 percent. In September, the rate soared to 86.2 percent as airlines continued to cut flights.As usual, interisland carrier Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time arrival rate — 94.1 percent — among the 19 domestic carriers surveyed by the bureau.Fort Worth-based American Airlines and its regional carrier, American Eagle, were in the middle of the pack, with 85 percent. Dallas-based Southwest Airlines posted 89 percent, the third-best performance of all domestic carriers.Among airports, Dallas/Fort Worth had a rate of 87.2 percent in September, 14th-best in the country, the bureau said.The government said it received 604 consumer complaints about airline service in September, down 11.6 percent from the same period in 2008. Also, domestic carriers posted a mishandled baggage rate of 3.01 reports per 1,000 passengers in September, down from 3.86 per 1,000 in September 2008.| Carrier (September) | % on-time arrivals |
| Hawaiian | 94.1 |
| Alaska | 90.0 |
| Southwest | 89.1 |
| Continental | 88.4 |
| US Airways | 87.9 |
| United | 87.9 |
| American | 86.0 |
| American Eagle | 84.8 |
| Northwest | 84.5 |
| AirTran | 83.4 |
| Delta | 82.2 |
| All airlines | 86.2 |
ANDREA AHLES, 817-390-7631
@Nyx.CommentBody@