Report Says Airline Service Has Suffered

[lawren2 Malibu Beach Barbie & A Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close lawren2]

Among the study's conclusions:

_Southwest Airlines had the lowest rate of complaints, 0.18 per 100,000 passengers, while US Airways had the highest, 1.86.

_ATA had the highest rate of denied boardings, 2.75 per 10,000 passengers; JetBlue had the lowest at 0.

_AirTran had the best baggage handling rate, mishandling 3.43 bags per 1,000 passengers; and Atlantic Southeast had the worst, (mishandling 17.41 bags per 1,000 passengers.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060403/...irline_quality

but now I am really confused as I really believed that ATA and AirTran were one and the same?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

Yep heard this on the radio this morning. Something like 17% more complaints.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

I tend to think that because of the bankruptcies and labor give backs that some of the carriers' employees have a "don't give a damn" attitude. Look at the big increases in lost luggage too.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

Airlines have no real customer service commitment any longer. No report, survey or any other in=depth studies need to be done....it is all about the profit, not the service.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

Trans-Atlantic, it makes all the difference in the world to fly a major European carrier. Most of the US-based airlines seem to be trying to imitate Freddie Laker's old SkyTrain. NW is the only one with some amenities left over the pond.

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

You know, i do not even bother to complain about the poor service any longer. It used to be you could write a letter. But with all the BS customer relations tactics I do not bother. In fact my new suitcase was broken from US air two months ago. They broke the strap. When I went to file a claim the rep showed me what they will not cover. I think they have it all covered. There is not one thing on a suitcase that can break that they will cover. If they punch a hole in it too bad if the strap breaks to bad if the wheel breaks to bad if the handle comes off to bad. Get the picture.

[tonyg Goomba & Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close tonyg]

I watched them loading baggage at Newark once during a layover. It's amazing anything looks like what you checked after that treatment. My stepson borrowed a large softside bag from a relative that was an executive at the airline, and they broke one wheel off- so they must have some awareness of the problem. From what I hear, damage is compensated for adequately by many foreign carriers.

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

The ''baggage mishandlers'' or ''luggage throwers'' of US airlines are the source of a lot of damage. If you have elite ff status with an airline, they will usually waive their exceptions of what they will not pay for.

I agree that foreign carriers are the best at compensation for luggage damge.
My wife once had KLM replace two bags on the same trip. She was given a voucher to go to a luggage shop in Vienna to select a comparable replacement.

[Janie Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Janie]

Yikes, Carolinian: NWA? I'm pretty well stuck with them flying out of MSP. I can't imagine that customer service or amenities could be any worse. Because of their horrible labor situation, their staff is usually incredibly crabby, and because they never know if they'll have a job from week to week, they really don't seem to care about what they do on the job.

[katiemack Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close katiemack]

Janie, your description is an exact description of the last year of service when TWA was in its dying stages....it was painful to fly the airline, as the employees were so discouraged and had totally given up on any sort of customer service.