Flight delays worsen in May

U.S. airline delays worsened in May for a fifth straight month, and the passenger-complaint rate surged 45%, the Transportation Department said.

Only 77.9% of May flights arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, down from 78.3% in the same month in 2006, the agency said. The complaint rate jumped to 1.13 per 100,000 passengers, compared with 0.78 last year.

Delays in May kept 2007’s on-time arrival rate at the worst level since 1995, a reflection of growing aviation gridlock as carriers add flights while the Federal Aviation Administration works to upgrade air-traffic control equipment.