Airlines Get A Bad Report Card

Study: Number Of Bags Lost And Passengers Bumped Increased In 2006, With Fewer On-Time Flights

(CBS/AP)  Last year, for every 1,000 passengers, 6.50 bags were lost, stolen or damaged, compared with 6.06 in 2005. Hawaiian had the best baggage handling performance; Atlantic Southeast the worst.

The increase in lost bags comes as at least one domestic carrier — Spirit Airlines — plans a new fee for passengers who check their bags. Come June, Spirit will charge $5 each for one or two checked bags if the ticket was booked online and $10 each for passengers who do not book online.

Headley does not think the idea will fly with consumers, who long have expected their ticket prices to include a checked bag or two. "It will set off an absolute atomic bomb," he said.

Baggage problems are due to airlines cutting the number of employees on their ground staffs over the past few years, Headley said at a news conference Monday.

On-time performance, the report said, worsened last year, with 75.5 percent of flights arriving on time, compared with 77.3 percent in 2005.

JetBlue took a hit in February, when passengers on 10 planes spent from 5 to 10 1/2 hours sitting on runways at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York because of icy weather and gate congestion.

It took days for the airline to recover from the February storm and resume normal operations. That led JetBlue to establish a customer bill of rights promising vouchers to passengers who experience delays.

Some lawmakers want to pass legislation establishing certain rights for air passengers. The airlines oppose the move. "Legislating what is the right thing to do for a service provider usually won't work," Headley said.

Overall, complaints about the airlines last year held steady at about 0.88 complaints for every 100,000 passengers. Nearly half the complaints were about flight problems or baggage.

"It just seems to me that consumer expectations have been lowered," Headley said, explaining that at the end of the 1990s and in 2000 the numbers of complaints were much higher, even though problems with baggage and delays were less frequent.

The study found an increase in the number of passengers bumped or denied boarding because of oversold flights — 1.01 denied boardings per 10,000 passengers last year, compared with 0.89 per 10,000 in 2005. JetBlue had the lowest rate of bumped passengers; Atlantic Southeast the highest.

But also, overall, customer complaints have actually dropped slightly — though the authors of the study say that might just be because customer expectations have dropped, too, Cordes reports.

[klingon69]

Barbara4;
Like anyone can negotiate the narrow spaces to reach the bathroom. Let alone be able to get out of your sesat and row.

[toldyouso21]

We do not fly anymore. Period. If we have to go somewhere, we drive. ... Flying from New York to Instanbul, with a brief stopover in Vienna and London - Posted by davpaw at 12:52 PM : Apr 02, 2007

LOL. so tell us....If you need to get to Istanbul or any point off the North American continent, how do you get there in a car?
and no, you can have crappy service internationally also. (I flew to Paris in 1994 on TWA) the service was so awful..truly one for the books--it included a male fA that yelled at everyone, addressed dried spaghetti in a tray by removing it with his bare hands and swinging it over his head before tossing it into the crowded seats. (and he still expected the passenger to eat where his hands had been) the crew refused to identify the person (they all removed their tags) they also picked up drinks before they were done--told everyone they had enough and turned off the reading lights of those reading at night--shouting "No one can sleep with the lights on--be considerate!" When we got to Paris, an entire line tried to make complaints but the lines were so long, most just said forget it. I never flew them again. In 1996 when that TWA flight to Paris went down in DC, I wondered if the crew from hell was in attendance.

[toldyouso21]

I'd like to see baggage handling outsourced to FedEx, UPS or other, and let them compete for the contracts against each other. It would result in a system that was better, faster, cheaper, and would be accountable too. Posted by davpaw at 12:52 PM : Apr 02, 2007

Stop it--the rhetoric about competition, and how the private sector can do it better is bs--initially, yes things get a little better, but as the price wars and competition drag on, service gets worse and worse. 2 huge cases in point: Look at the mess of cable and telephone service. Bogus charges, rate hikes and who among us haven't gotten those letters or notices saying the cable, telephone or even mortgage companies are sued and have to pay huge settlements for fraud? The same is true for gas service and even banking (banc of america just paid out millions for fraud) face it, when greed drives the game--companies will do whatever they can get away with including stealing from customers, shoddy work, etc. And this is not just unionized people. Fed EX has been responsible for delivery of overnight mail and express from the USPS for several years now. Most overnight mail takes 2 days to get there and to date this year, I have had 3 lost items and at least 2 tracked items, where the item was not even wanded. Quality is not the mainstay of the private sector either.

[toldyouso21]

Spoly,

I'm curious.....are the airline workers unionized in Europe?
Posted by blazercoach1 at 11:32 AM : Apr 02, 2007
***************************
Many are, and even those that are not, usually have protected jobs. They cannot be fired at will, their minimum wage is almost twice ours, and they must go to court to dismiss someone. They get paid vacations from the first day of work on (2 weeks that can then progress to as much as 5 weeks a year) they all have health benefits and even part timers have rights --full timers in America do not have including the implied right to work--which means if they stay at a job for a certain period of time (In Holland I believe it is 60 or 90 days) they must be offered permanent part time work, with paid holidays, benefits, etc and again--cannot be fired without a very lengthy process. American companies doing business in Europe are subject to these same rules and must agree before establishing businesses there.

[toldyouso21]

always choose an international carrier whenever possible. I have flown with Air France, Lufthansa, British Airways, .. and others and have honestly never had a problem in over 40 years of traveling...."
********************************
British airways--I used to like--but now, one of worst airlines. Personnel suck. They forced my family to split apart (my girls were 9 and 2--the 9 year old ended up sitting alone. because a 20 something person with bad hygiene claimed to need to sit with their tour group (we had reserved seats) then they spent the flight continually being chastised for getting up when they shouldn't, throwing things like pens and socks, etc. For daring to complain, I got a suspisciously open food container while everyone got sealed. There was some wet, yellowish stuff atop the rice. They hovered and asked how I liked the meal. I smiled and NEVER ate a single bite--in those days (and Now) I carry an emergency ration of goodies --as for my drink, I ask for the unopen can. this happened going from London to Ireland in 1999--been boycotting them since.

[toldyouso21]

last time lots of empty seats on plane for me and my family: 2/2007 going to and from europe enough room for 2 to stretch out and sleep (several rows in the middle seats were empty) the other 4 people all could have window seats id they wanted.

2/2006--enoguh seats that I and my daughter could stretch completely out (but I chose an entire row with windows (3 seats). going to and from Hawaii--3/2006 same thing except traveling with 5 people--all had plenty of lateral room, (space for long legs and knee space--non existent the crowded flights were the commuter flights into hubs like LAX and O Hare, those were fully packed. Service sucks with several flights not even having working toilets (when they don't have toilets--no beverages are served and we are no longer allowed to bring drinks on board or in waiting area. Try THAT when you have a sore throat or hacking cough.

[barbaraf4]

We do not fly anymore. Period. If we have to go somewhere, we drive.

For those of you old enough to remember Pan Am service during the 1960's, those were the days. Flying from New York to Instanbul, with a brief stopover in Vienna and London - this quality of service should be the goal of every airline.

Now, flying is like taking a bus trip. It's affordable, so everyone flys. Next they will install pay toilets.

[tuckerndfw]

Stop blaming the airlines for this mess and write your Congresspersons demanding them to allocate more money to upgrading the antique Air Traffic Control system in this country!

Posted by b727100bear at 11:26 PM : Apr 02, 2007

On the contrary, airlines and airplane owners should pay the expenses for operating airports, not taxpayers.

If taxpayers are going to subsidize transportation, we need to subsidize local commuter railroads.

It isn't the taxpayers' responsibility to subsidize airlines or airports.

If passengers and airplane owners do not want to be delayed or inconvenienced, they need to pay their own bills.

BTW, according to the story, the number one complaint is about lost luggage. How will improving ATC resolve that complaint?

[ndg1979]

Interesting how the airlines are saying that the government should be responsible for the financial bailout of the airline system, even though they are saying that the government shouldn't regulate them. So let me get this straight - we'll take the gov's money, but not their input. Ludicrous!! After all, where does the gov's money come from - US!!

I can't understand why the airlines are not self-sufficient yet. Every other non-bankrupt business entity is. I agree that some of them need to go in the name of progress. U.S. Airways should be one. I flew Southwest recently and had EXCELLENT service in Pittsburgh (home), Chicago (midway) and Phoenix (destination).

Airline CEO's should have pay tied to performance. If they suck - NO MONEY!! Hit them where it hurts and maybe they will wake up.

[feelfree1]

...and the anthrax attacks...did they just decide to let byegones be byegones, on that one?

[feelfree1]

By the way, who was it that made all that money off of their "put options" on United and American airlines, placed just prior 9/11/01?

Did anyone ever find out?

[b727100bear]

Stop blaming the airlines for this mess and write your Congresspersons demanding them to allocate more money to upgrading the antique Air Traffic Control system in this country! LGA and ORD are at near gridlock status even on clear weather days due to such tight scheduling of arrivals and departures at these airports that when crosswinds reach 10-15 knots groundstops and delays at originating airports are inevitable backing up the system nationwide. The airlines MUST operate under Federal Air Regulations to ensure passenger safety in this outdated system and NOTHING WILL CHANGE UNTIL THE SYSTEM IS REPLACED - There is certainly room for improvement on the airline service side but cost-cutting has been essential to ensure mere survival since September 11, 2001.

[hypnotoad72]

Given the money customers pay, to say "You're stuck on an airline 11 hours? Tough! You should just be happy they let you on!" is extremely crass. Particularly if the person isn't a terrorist; though the reality is anybody with a brain would rather wait and let competent people suss out the vermin...

[rudy654-2009]

"Where did you miss the part where I said that you can choose not to fly?"

Yeah, we have the right to choose, but just not the right to complain? We don't owe them anything, and if we want to complain - that's a part of the process as well!!

I am sick of every time the subject comes up about airlines poor customer treatment, here comes someone to tell the rest of us that we have nothing to complain about and to shut up.

It goes like this:
You're stuck on an airline 11 hours? Tough! You should just be happy they let you on! Airlines lost your luggage? Tough! Who told you to bring a change of clothing in the first place? The plane is packed to capacity, seats to small, leg room about nil and you're arriving late? Tough! It's better now than before deregulation and why don't you just drive next time? Anything but complain!

[shanev137]

The airlines absolutely suckass. If i'm going anywhere where I can drive it in 8 hours or less I won't fly.

[davpaw-2009]

I just had a three hour flight and a two-hour wait for my bags. Hartsfield (Atlanta, GA) is the worst. I wonder if the baggage handling employees have quality targets and are measured against them. When you have no incentives, and no threat of job loss for not meeting expectations, then you have a grim situation.

Humans are like water - they take the path of least resistance.

I'd like to see baggage handling outsourced to FedEx, UPS or other, and let them compete for the contracts against each other. It would result in a system that was better, faster, cheaper, and would be accountable too.

As fliers, we should go right to the lost baggage line, forgoing the carousel, and report our bags lost and go home. It would be faster than waiting for them to show up on the carousel, and would send a message to the airlines that we will not accept this treatment any more.

The flight and the airlines' responsibility for service does not end at the gate, but when we get our bags and leave the airport.

[cjhr43]

blazercoach1
good point... I am curious about the responses here.

[blazercoach1]

Spoly,

I'm curious.....are the airline workers unionized in Europe?

[cntryb4prty]

Obviously most of you do not remember when the airlines were a regulated business. Prices were fixed no matter which airline you flew. Alot of people could not afford to fly. Most airline travel was business. The only way an airline could distinguish itself was with service.

With deregulation came competition and lower prices. Now you can afford to fly along with everybody else hence the problem. Crowded flights and delays are common place because of an overloaded system.

I agree tax dollars should not be used to bail out business. What is required is that some of these struggling airlines be allowed to fail to make more room for the more efficient ones. That's business, that's the free market doing what it does best. Goverment's role is to make sure everybody plays by the same rules not to set prices. There is no perfect system but time and time again the free market has outscored the other systems.

[cbsnewsblog]

Spirit is setting itself up for failure through unintended consequence. To avoid the checked bag fee more passengers will pack via carry-on's which means not only more carry-on bags but larger ones as well. That will cause delays in boarding times as more bags are checked at the gate. I'd be willing to wager that those delays will cost more revenue than the checked bag fees can generate. Especially as unhappy customers go to other airlines spreading the bad news of Spirit. Someone hasn't thought this decision through.