The US Airlines Most, Least Likely to Bump Passengers

The Vacationer recently analyzed Air Travel Consumer Reports from the U.S. Department of Transportation to determine how domestic carriers rank when it comes to bumping passengers involuntarily. The travel site examined data released over the last 12 months (Q3 2019 - Q2 2020) on a per 100,000 passenger basis to reveal the airlines most and least likely to involuntarily deny boarding to passengers. Here's how they rank from first to worst.

Despite recording 10,999,610 enplaned passengers over the 12-month period that The Vacationers analyzed, Delta Air Lines' regional carrier Endeavor Air didn't involuntarily bump a single customer during that time frame. The airline also carried 404,077 passengers at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic during Q2 2020 with no bumps reported.

Delta is the least likely mainline carrier to bump a passenger when they don't expect it, recording only three involuntary bumps despite flying 107,673,778 passengers over the one-year period analyzed.

Hawaiian Airlines has been heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which prompted Hawaii to impose a mandatory 14-day quarantine for visitors arriving from out of state. Nonetheless, the carrier can take solace in its stellar involuntary bump rate of 0.013 per 100,000 passengers over the past year.

ExpressJet Airlines, which ceased operations last month, didn't involuntarily bump a single passenger during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic (Q2 2020) and denied boarding to just one passenger over the one-year period that The Vacationer analyzed.

Las Vegas-based Allegiant Air is the least likely budget airline to bump you at only 0.033 bumps per 100,000 passengers. The carrier's four denied boardings are quite remarkable considering that it carried 11,943,253 total passengers over that period.

United Airlines has been one of the best airlines when it comes to avoiding involuntary bumps, denying boarding to just 27 customers while carrying 71,850,837 passengers over the one-year period that The Vacationer reviewed.

JetBlue was one of eight U.S. airlines that reported zero involuntarily denied boardings during the second quarter of 2020 when the coronavirus crisis reached its peak. Overall, the airline ranks 11th with a decent bump rate of 0.096 per 100,000 passengers.

Southwest Airlines carried more passengers than any other airline that The Vacationer analyzed (118,214,511) but only bumped 805 customers involuntarily for a respectable rate of just 0.681 per 100,000 passengers.

Alaska Airlines bumped only 230 passengers between the third quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020 but carried nearly five times fewer passengers than Southwest, turning in a bump rate of 0.904 per 100,000.

Spirit Airlines is one of eight carriers with an involuntary bump rate higher than 1 per 100,000, denying boarding to 251 passengers while carrying 24,734,296 total over the 12-month period analyzed by The Vacationer.

SkyWest Airlines, which has contracts with major carriers including American, Delta and United, was forced to involuntarily deny boarding to 566 passengers between the third quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020, including 36 customers during the height of the coronavirus pandemic (Q2 2020).

Phoenix-based regional carrier Mesa Airlines bumps passengers at a rate of just over 2.1 per 100,000. Keep in mind that the airline only carried 536,745 passengers over the course of the year that The Vacationer analyzed, involuntarily denying boarding to just a dozen passengers.

American Airlines bumped more passengers than any other airline during the 12-month period in question, involuntarily denying boarding to a whopping 3,511 customers at a rate of 3.359 bumps per 100,000 passengers. That fares worst among the Big Four U.S. airlines.

Like American, Frontier Airlines is three times more likely to bump a passenger than all other mainline airlines. For an additional perspective, the ultra-low-cost carrier is 1,225 times more likely to bump a passenger compared to Delta. What's more, the airline fared the worst during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic (Q2 2020), turning in a bump rate of 6.521 per 100,000.

Republic Airways reported 445 involuntary denied boardings while carrying 11,809,268 passengers between the third quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020 for a bump rate of 3.768 per 100,000 passengers, which narrowly edges out Frontier and American for third-worst.

American Airlines regional brand PSA Airlines flew 11,518,291 passengers between the third quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2020 but wound up bumping 1,041 customers for a disappointing rate of 9.038 per 100,000 passengers.

Another American Airlines Group subsidiary, Texas-based Envoy Air fared the worst for involuntary bumps over the past year, denying boarding at an exceptional rate of 12.523 per 100,000 passengers. The carrier's 1,412 total involuntary bumps trail only American Airlines mainline carrier.