Australia's most delayed domestic and international flight routes

We know some airports struggle a little more with delays than others, but it turns out there are also certain flight routes that have more services arriving late.

New research has revealed the most delayed flight routes in Australia, with some arriving nearly an hour late on average.

The Delay to Departure Report, by Esendex Australia, analysed Flightradar24 data of hundreds of domestic and international flight routes from Australia's busiest airports over the past year, to assess the best and worst routes.

READ MORE: 'Airport brain': Aussie airport issues warning to distracted travellers over safety

Darwin to Groote Eylandt reported the highest average delay time of all flights across Australia, landing 46 minutes late on average.

Alice Springs to Perth is the second most delayed route for travellers, with flights arriving 37 minutes late on average.

READ MORE: 'Rude' things you shouldn't do when boarding a plane

View gallery

Aussie low-cost airline named one of the world's best

All up, three routes from Darwin make the top ten most delayed domestic flights list in total, including Darwin – Townsville in third place (36-minute delay), and Darwin – Elcho Island in eighth place (23-minute delay).

"Delayed flights can have a real knock-on effect for travellers, particularly on routes where people are relying on onward connections, ground transport, or tight schedules at the other end," Jonathan Walsh, General Manager at Esendex Australia, said.

"Disruption is often unavoidable, but how that disruption is communicated makes a significant difference."

As Australia's busiest airport, handling over 40 million passengers annually in 2023-2024, Sydney Kingsford Smith performed well.

Melbourne Airport only received one mention with flights from Launceston to the Victorian Capital arriving on average 18 minutes late.

Meanwhile, Brisbane travellers felt delays on routes to Charleville (24 minutes) and Weipa (22 minutes).

The most delayed domestic flight routes across Australia:

1. Darwin - Groote Eylandt - 46 minutes
2. Alice Springs - Perth - 37 minutes
3. Darwin - Townsville - 36 minutes
4. Newcastle - Perth - 33 minutes
5. Perth - Kununurra - 26 minutes
6. Adelaide - Broken Hill - 25 minutes
7. Brisbane - Charleville - 24 minutes
8. Darwin - Elcho Island - 23 minutes
9. Brisbane - Weipa - 22 minutes
10. Launceston - Melbourne - 18 minutes

The research also looked into the most delayed international departures from Australia.

Those travelling from Brisbane to Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea can expect the latest arrivals, running 27 minutes behind schedule on average. Followed by flights from Melbourne to Delhi in India, with a 25-minute delay.

Three routes from Melbourne make the most delayed list for international flights, followed by two routes from Perth, and one from Brisbane.

The most delayed international flights from Australia:

1. Brisbane - Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea - 27 minutes
2. Melbourne - Delhi, India - 25 minutes
3. Perth - Tansonnhat, Vietnam / Sydney - Christchurch, New Zealand - 19 minutes
4. Perth - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia / Brisbane - Honiara, Solomon Islands - 18 minutes
5. Melbourne - Los Angeles, USA / Melbourne - Colombo, Sri Lanka - 15 minutes

View gallery

Peek inside the world's best airline seats for 2026