Studies have shown that flights are more likely to be delayed in December, often by three hours or more. It is suggested you be prepared for this and plan accordingly.
No one wants to spend any part of his or her holiday in an airport lounge. But if your flight is cancelled or delayed, that is most likely what you will be doing during the busy holiday season.
Most airlines are required to offer some sort of compensation for flights delayed by more than three hours. They are to be registered with the Aviation Ombudsman's, Alternative Dispute Resolution scheme. Many airlines are not, or they are not providing the necessary information to passengers. The reason this was created was to help passengers get a quick and fair resolution to their problems.
Gatwick Airport was listed as the worse airport for delays, with 23,862 delayed flights. Gatwick is one of the busiest a single runway airports with the most flights to Europe from the UK. They also suffered delays beyond the airports control, one of which includes an Air Traffic Control Strike that affected European airspace.
Gatwick also constantly strives to ensure their flights leave on time, but with the busyness of the airport it can be a challenge. It is often the case that once one flight is delayed, it tends to have a domino effect, making everything thereafter delayed.
This problem is yet another issue Gatwick has used in its bid for another runway to be built there. We will keep our eyes peeled and see how this continues to develop.