Flight Stats.. The site which show the performance of flights over time

As the global economy is becoming more and more connected, the aviation industry is one of the fastest transportation sectors. Air transportation also plays an important role for tourism, also provides entrance to international markets and assists in the progress of world trade. During the last years, the industry has experienced a sustained growth in the number of flights, managing to overcome the terrible social and commercial impact as a result of the 2001 terrorist attacks(http://traveltips.usatoday.com/effects-911-airline-industry-63890.html). Impact can be observed in the reduction of the number of flights in 2002.

Of the number of scheduled flights during the period between 2000 and 2008, it can be seen that only 2% were flights canceled, while 98% were carried out.

It is important to mention that the relationship between canceled flights and flights carried out is maintained during all the years of the period. Concluding that the relationship between these percentages is normal for the industry because the cancellation causes are external to the operators.

Regarding the causes of cancellation of flights, it is clear that 98% of the data does not have information. It means that around 66% of data has no value and 33% have a NA value. The other 2% is composed of: A = carrier, B = weather, C = NAS, D = security.

This lack of data that specify the causes of cancellation of flights occurred to a large extent in the years 2000 to 2003. This may mean that in these years this information was not relevant so the field possibly did not exist in the application through the which was this information managed.

Between 2003 and 2008, the main cause of cancellation of flights is caused by the carriers (A). The next cause is because of the weather (B). The penultimate cause is the National Aviation System (C) and finally for security reasons.

Of the 98% of flights that are not canceled, it can be evidenced that there are no seasonal sales. However there are high peaks in March, July and August. And a reduction of flights in February, September and November.

Regarding the frequency of number of flights per day of the month, the days on which there are fewer flights are 29, 30 and 31. However, the frequency of flights on the 31st must be observed with care since it is necessary to consider that not all months have 31 days. From this point of view, the number of flights on day 31 can be considered high since only 7 months are counted.

Regarding the frequency of flights with respect to the days of the week, there are fewer flights on weekends.

Another important aspect regarding the flights carried out is the distribution by carrier during the analysis periods. A dominance in the market can be evidenced by Southwest Airlines Co, a company that during the analysis period shows a continuous growth starting from 22% of the market until reaching 36%. In the same way it can be seen that Delta Air Lines Inc. alternates the second place with America Airlines. However, at the end of the period it loses space and leaves the top 5. The other carriers that share positions 3, 4 and 5 also present important changes, as there are carriers that grow and appear in the top 5 while others disappear.