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Manchester Airport has been exposed as Britain's most delay-plagued airport, with a scathing new report finding its chronic underperformance leaves it "difficult for passengers to book with any real confidence."

CAA data placed the airport - the country's third busiest - last among 23 commercial airports, with an average departure delay of 19 and a half minutes. It was only 30 seconds better than the year before.

Which? Travel editor Rory Boland reportedly said: "Manchester Airport has ranked last in our airport survey for four consecutive years and these new CAA figures validate why this is a particularly poor place to be stranded during delays.

"For passengers already wary of travel uncertainty, seeing such consistent underperformance makes it difficult to book with any real confidence."

Birmingham came second from bottom, with an average departure delay of 18 minutes and 42 seconds, followed by Bournemouth at 17 minutes and 18 seconds, according to GB News.

Barely 30 miles up the road, Liverpool John Lennon Airport is reported to have topped the punctuality rankings, with an average delay of just nine minutes and 24 seconds.

The research covered scheduled and charter departures from airports processing a minimum of 1,000 outbound flights last year, with cancellations excluded from the figures. Overall, the industry-wide average delay improved to 14 minutes and 54 seconds from 18 minutes and 24 seconds the previous year.

Manchester Airport defended its performance, insisting many causes of disruption lay beyond its control. A spokesman said: "Punctuality is affected by factors that are outside of an airport's control.

"The two most significant factors contributing to delays in the last year have been industrial action affecting air traffic control in Europe, and the weather.

"These were exacerbated by airspace restrictions above conflict zones meaning airports with significant long-haul networks, like Manchester, were more significantly affected than others.

"As an industry we are working collectively to achieve the best possible on-time departure rates, while protecting flight schedules and avoiding the need for cancellations."

The airport serves roughly 32 million passengers annually and stands alone outside Heathrow in operating two runways. A £1.3 billion overhaul - including a revamped Terminal 2 and the shutting of Terminal 1 - has recently been completed, though Terminal 3 works continue.

Bournemouth Airport said delays were beyond its control "in the majority of cases," while insisting it remains "one of the UK's top-ranked regional airports for passenger satisfaction."

CAA consumer chief Anna Bowles urged airports and airlines to focus on "delivering punctual and reliable journeys for passengers wherever possible," warning delays can have a "real impact for people heading off on holidays."

Travellers facing serious delays could be due food, drink, a hotel and up to £520 in compensation - providing the cause falls within the airline's own remit, such as staff shortages or mechanical problems. Delays triggered by air traffic control failures are treated as extraordinary circumstances, leaving passengers with no automatic right to a payout.