Some airlines post the on-time performance of their flights on their websites as you are booking them, and some do not. Some of the online travel agencies also offer this information. It’s most likely posted as a range (60 to 70% on-time) which is all they are required to report. However, there are some other alternatives out there that offer a good bit more in depth information about the performance of specific flights, routes, etc. I’ll start with Uncle Sam’s offering from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Here’s the link directly to the airline on-time performance section of their website. You can look at the performance stats of specific flights, airlines, and markets (i.e. LGA-MIA). It’s not exactly fancy, but it is free, and your tax dollars are financing it. So check it out when you get a chance. There are some other internet sites out there that offer similar information. One I’ve recently discovered is flightstats.com. It contains a wealth of information, and displays it in very neat charts and graphs. Give it a shot. Next time you’re getting ready to fly, check out one or both of these sites to see the historical on-time performance of your flight. This is very handy information for travelers of all types, business or...

It has been hot. I mean…HOT. It’s been a long time since we’ve had so many 100 plus degree days here in the DC area. Heat doesn’t bother me like it used to. I spent 2 years in Dallas during my airline time. I moved there in April. It was 75 degrees and sunny everyday. I thought…wow..what a great place. On June 1st the temp rose to 110 degrees, and I don’t think we had a break at all until the middle of September! Before my time in DFW, I didn’t care for summer at all. Ever since…heat just doesn’t bother me anymore. Summer can be especially tricky for travelers. Thunderstorms, hurricanes, crowds, density altitude…. What’s density altitude? It’s an airplane thing. 🙂 Without getting too technical, and thus embarrassing myself, I’ll just say that as air gets hotter, and more humid, it becomes less dense. Here’s an excellent article on the subject. This negatively impacts aircraft performance in a variety of ways, most notably, airplanes need longer runways, and don’t climb as well. This is especially problematic at short runway fields such as Reagan National (DCA). I remember getting yelled at by a particularly testy passenger telling me that I had overbooked the flight and all this weight restriction stuff was bullsh*t. I wonder what he thought when the flight left with 20 empty seats because we just...