AirHelp, a travel tech company supporting passengers with flight disruptions, has analysed Irish flight data from a five-day period (28th April to 2nd May 2023) to reveal the best destinations to fly to, and days to travel, to avoid flight disruptions this Early May Bank Holiday.
The data indicates that more than 294,000 Irish passengers had flights scheduled during this period last year. The first two days of May were the busiest, with 121,000 people departing from Irish airports across the two days.
Bank Holiday Disruption Analysis
Looking at the data reveals that nearly 67,000 passengers suffered from disruptions when travelling from an Irish airport during the five days last year. Of those passengers, 4,200 faced flight cancellations and over 5,700 were eligible for compensation from their airline.
Friday 28th of April was the best day to travel last year, with more than 44,000 passengers departing on time from Ireland and only 400 people impacted by flight cancellations. This is closely followed by Tuesday 2nd of May, with 43,700 Irish passengers leaving for their trips with no disruptions.
On the other hand, the most disrupted day was the 1st of May (Bank Holiday Monday), with 18,000 passengers facing flight cancellations or delays of more than three hours when departing from Irish airports. What’s more, 2,500 people travelling on this date last year were entitled to compensation, which equates to 44% of the total number of Irish passengers who could claim compensation from their airline across the five day period.
Best Destinations to Avoid Disruption
AirHelp also analysed the top ten destinations to fly to over the same period, based on those with the most punctual arrivals. The United Kingdom (73,000), the United States (25,300) and Spain (25,000) took the top spots, with the most early or on-time flight arrivals from Irish airports.
These were closely followed by Germany (13,000) and Italy (11,700). The data therefore indicates that short-haul flights to Europe and flights to the United States are likely to be the best options for holidaymakers to avoid disruptions this year.
CEO of AirHelp, Tomasz Pawliszyn, comments: “Thanks to our database – one of the most reliable and accurate collections of flight data in the world – we can provide passengers with insights on airport performance from specific times of the year to help passengers avoid disruptions. Data from last year highlights the best days and destinations for travelling around the Early May Bank Holiday. We encourage anyone impacted by flight disruptions to check their eligibility for compensation and recommend that all passengers know their rights to reduce the impact of future disruptions, should they face them.”
According to Europe’s air passenger rights laws, travellers are entitled to compensation for delays of more than three hours, cancellation of their flight or denied boarding – all where the airline is at fault. Air passengers who have experienced interruptions have a period of three years to claim, being able to check their eligibility for compensation for free and file a claim in a matter of minutes through the form at AirHelp – #1 Air Passenger Rights Experts
