US Airways Shows Stellar Operational Improvement, but Nobody Knows It

(MoneyWatch)  It's been a big month for US Airways (LCC). The Department of Transportation just released operational stats for May, and US Airways had the best on-time, mishandled bag, and complaint performance of all the legacy carriers. That's a big deal, but most people don't know about it. US Airways still doesn't believe in brand advertising, but it should reconsider.

May numbers were just excellent for US Airways across the board. It saw 85.3 percent of its flights arrive on time. That was only behind Hawaiian Airlines (and its easy west coast/Hawai'i weather flying) and Alaska Airlines (ALK). United (UAUA) was close behind at 84.8 percent. US Airways mishandled only 2.27 bags per 1,000 passengers, beating Continental (CAL) by a hair and only falling behind AirTran (AAI), Hawaiian, and JetBlue (JBLU). The airline also reported 1.19 complaints per 100,000 passengers. That would be a lot for many airlines, but it's a huge improvement for the airline and it did put it above all other legacy carriers (though behind several low cost/regional carriers).

These numbers really speak to an airline that has done a tremendous job of improving its operation, and US Airways is making sure its employees know it. This is the first time it has achieved the so-called "Triple Crown" since the merger, and it means a $150 bonus for employees. Not too shabby. I received three separate emails from people at the airline and they were clearly really working hard to make sure the employees felt appreciated for all the hard work.

But there's a missing piece: The airline's customers and potential customers don't know much about it. US Airways hasn't spent on brand advertising for a long time, but the brand is certainly one that could use a boost. Since the dawn of time, people have loved to hate US Airways. It started with Allegheny Airlines (er, Agony Airlines) and went into the USAir years. Many people still call the airline US Scare and remember the multiple crashes in the early 1990s. Changing the name to US Airways didn't help.

US Airways went through several brushes with death after 9/11, and the merger with America West produced some poor operational performance for a time. In short, when people think of US Airways, they don't think of a good airline.

My grandfather is a great anecdotal example. He's pushing ninety years old and was just planning a trip to North Carolina. I suggested he fly nonstop to Charlotte on US Airways. This is a man who hasn't flown that airline in ages but has flown others plenty. The first thing out of his mouth? "Can't you find a better airline?"

When the America West-led management decided to go with the US Airways name, they made a mistake. There's a lot of baggage there, and it's not easy to fix by just running a great operation. That's an important foundation, of course. You can't tell people how great you are if you aren't great. But now that the airline is running well, it's time to start getting the word out there.

I know that they'll argue that people will pick flights based on price and schedule and not much else, but I still think there's a benefit to positive brand association in this industry. JetBlue has proven it, as has Southwest (LUV). It's time for US Airways to reconsider so that it can show off its new-found operational excellence to a broader audience.

Related:

• US Airways' Strong December On-Time Performance
• What I Missed at US Airways Media Day
• US Airways Walks Away From Las Vegas, Slashes Jobs

Photo via Flickr user MeRyan