Is profit the reason behind flight delays?

One of the complaints I hear most frequently lately, both from my close circle and on social media, is the delays occurring in flight departure times.

Domestic airlines, in particular, have exhausted the patience of passengers.

Not only do planes not take off on time, but now there is a new trend of transferring passengers to other flights. On international flights, this new 'mishap' is now pushing even human limits…

You arrive at the airport and start waiting in front of the electronic boards showing the flight departure times. It is as if there is almost no flight that takes off on time. Your eyes are constantly on the boards…

It starts with a 20-minute delay at first… Then, after half an hour, 40 minutes, they direct you to the gate before three hours have passed. Because passengers have legal rights regarding delay hours. I will mention these rights at the end of the article…

You arrive at the gate; ticket, ID, and passport checks are performed, and you are boarded onto the plane. Since you are now inside the plane, your legal rights arising from the delay disappear. While the staff inside are rushing around and passengers are settling in, the captain pilot makes an announcement:

“Dear passengers, this is your captain speaking. Due to a technical malfunction, we have to change the aircraft. Thank you for your understanding…”

When the captain says technical malfunction, everything stops. You aren't going to fly on a faulty plane, are you? With consent and a bit of fear, you leave the plane. You board the buses waiting for you and trudge back to the airport passenger lounge. 

Then you are directed to a new gate, go through ID and ticket checks again, and board the plane. 

For example, a flight that was supposed to take off at 09:00 in the morning, with the delay, your boarding, and the transfer to the new plane, takes off in the afternoon at 13:00 at best. Also, if you are flying abroad, consider that you arrive at the airport three hours early, take off 4 hours later, and fly for 2-3 hours. Even if waiting for luggage takes half an hour, it is an ordeal that will last 7-8-10 hours. 

You might say that this disruption can happen once in a blue moon, but when it happens in 30 out of 40 flights, you inevitably become suspicious. 

It happened to me personally; I experienced this on an Istanbul–London flight at the end of the summer, and the plane that was changed due to a technical malfunction was a larger plane and there were new passengers. Of course, I am not accusing them of combining two flights. But so many complaints have been received on the subject that if there are this many technical malfunctions, one shouldn't board the plane at all! 

30 out of 40 flights cannot be postponed due to malfunctions. Statistics say that the safest method of transportation in the world is air travel. If that is the case, one questions what this technical malfunction is all about.

A friend of mine who recently came from Istanbul Airport to London mentioned having a similar experience. Their claim changed the color of the situation a bit more. According to what they said, the first plane they boarded was changed and they moved to a new plane. And they saw that new cargo had arrived. 

So, I think airlines wouldn't make passengers miserable and combine two flights for cargo arriving at the last minute, would they? 

Don't say "it could happen," surely it hasn't gone that far, has it?

If 7 out of 10 people around me who travel by airline express the same complaint and this is being talked about on social media, one thinks, as the old saying goes, "There is no smoke without fire." 

Of course, the intention is not to cast suspicion on any airline, but shouldn't these rumors be clarified? 

By the way, it is also useful to know what rights passengers have in case of delays. 

By the airline company that will perform the flight, from the time the flight was supposed to take place;

• For domestic flights or all flights under 1500 kilometers, a delay of 2 hours or more

• For flights between 1500-3500 kilometers, a delay of 3 hours or more

• For flights over 3500 kilometers, if a delay of 4 hours or more is expected, passengers who are victims of the delay should be offered rights to refreshments and communication.

• If the plane is expected to be delayed by 1-2 hours or more, the passenger has the right to request a reservation/route change free of charge. The reservation/route change is arranged to be to the nearest point based on the kilometer scale. If there are other flights on the same ticket in the travel plan and they will be affected by the changes to be made at the beginning, these flights also have the right to be changed free of charge.

As the delay time increases, passengers have many rights ranging from phone usage to refreshments, free accommodation, and ticket changes. Type 'passenger rights and compensation conditions for flight delays' into Google and read your rights to the company representatives you encounter at the airport.

Perhaps in this way, technical malfunctions will decrease a little bit!