Edinburgh and Glasgow have been found to be the worst Scottish airports for flight delays.
Passengers waiting at either of the country’s two major airports were an average of 15 minutes late in departing last year – ranking seventh worst overall in the UK, according to Civil Aviation Authority data.
Aberdeen sat alongside Isle of Man, East Midlands, Leeds Bradford and London Heathrow with average delays of 13 minutes and a ranking of joint 15th.
Overall, London Stansted was the worst UK airport for flight delays last year, with aircraft at the country’s fourth busiest airport typically taking-off an average of 25 minutes behind schedule.
Birmingham and London Luton recorded the joint second worst punctuality performance, with aircraft leaving an average of 19 minutes late.
George Best, Belfast City Airport recorded the best performance, with a figure of just eight minutes.
Rory Boland, editor of consumer magazine Which? Travel, said of the worst offenders: “It’s completely unacceptable for passengers to be regularly delayed by nearly half an hour.
“These delays aren’t just an inconvenience but can leave holidaymakers hundreds of pounds out of pocket because of missed connections, transfers and fines for picking up their hire car late.
“While compensation is available for delays of over three hours, airlines should stop passing the buck and make it easier for their passengers by finally introducing automatic compensation.”
Trade body the Airport Operators Association (AOA) said delays are caused by a “range of factors”.
A spokesman added that disruption is also caused by the capacity of UK airspace being constrained.