Airline delays: worse than you think

If it wasn't enough to read that only 77.9% of airline flights arrived on time in May--a record low--read what can happen the rest of the time.

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology did a study several years ago and found that when missed connections and flight cancellations are factored in, the average wait was two-thirds longer than the official statistic.

Here's one way delays expand without tipping off the FAA:

If a flight taxies out, sits for hours, and then taxies back in and is canceled, the delay is not recorded. Likewise, flights diverted to cities other than their destination are not figured into delay statistics.