LHR to PVG flight delays
London (LHR) Shanghai (Pudong) (PVG)
400 flights · January 2025 – August 2026 · UK Civil Aviation Authority
88.13%
Arrived on time
Within 15 minutes of schedule
1%
Cancelled
Share of scheduled flights
—
When late, late by
Average across delayed arrivals
8 min
Delay per flight
Averaged over every flight flown
What the record says about this route
Which airline you fly changes the odds here. China Eastern Airlines arrived on time 20.7 points more often than British Airways over the same period on the same route — same airports, same weather, same air traffic control. A gap that survives all of that is about how the two airlines are run.
This route does better than its own airport. Departures from LHR overall run 9.4 points less punctual than this particular one — so whatever congestion LHR has, this route is largely escaping it.
The two directions do not behave alike. PVG to LHR arrives on time 5.7 points less often than the outbound. Delay accumulates through the flying day, so whichever direction is scheduled later tends to carry the worse record — which is an argument for booking the morning departure if the choice exists.
Flights from London to Shanghai (Pudong) are among the most dependable in the record. A route this punctual is usually a short hop between airports with slots to spare.
Which airline should you fly on this route?
Over January 2025 – August 2026, China Eastern Airlines arrived on time most often on LHR to PVG. British Airways was late most often. Flights ran closest to schedule in April and worst in June.
Every airline on LHR to PVG
Ranked by how many flights each one operated. A carrier with fewer than 100 flights in the period is listed but not graded.
| Airline | Flights | On time | Cancelled | Avg delay | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| China Eastern Airlines | 223 | 97.29% | 0.9% | — | A |
| British Airways | 177 | 76.57% | 1.13% | — | C |
Month by month
Share of flights that arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, by month flown.
The return leg
PVG to LHR Shanghai (Pudong) back to London 82.44% on time BOther routes from London
Common questions
Are flights from London to Shanghai (Pudong) usually delayed?
88.13% of flights on the LHR to PVG route arrived within 15 minutes of schedule, so roughly 1 in every ten arrived late. That is better than the average route in this record.
Which airline is most on time from London to Shanghai (Pudong)?
China Eastern Airlines, at 97.29% on time across 223 flights. The least punctual on the route was British Airways at 76.57%.
How often are LHR to PVG flights cancelled?
1% of scheduled flights did not operate — about 10 in every thousand. That is in the normal range.
What is the best month to fly London to Shanghai (Pudong)?
April, when 93.3% of flights arrived on time. The worst was June at 79.7%.
What these figures do and do not tell you
Everything on this page is counted from the flights that actually operated on LHR to PVG during January 2025 – August 2026, as reported by the airlines to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. "On time" is the federal definition: arriving at the gate within 15 minutes of the scheduled time.
A route's record is a description of the past, not a forecast. Weather, air traffic control and the aircraft's earlier flights that day drive most delays, and none of them are predictable from a historical rate. What the record does tell you is whether this route runs late more often than others, and which carrier on it has the better history — which is the part you can actually act on when you book.
Cancellations are counted separately from delays because they are a different problem for a traveller: a late flight still gets you there. How the grade is calculated →