Sky Talk

JetBlue tops customer satisfaction index, United on the bottom

JetBlue Airways and Southwest Airlines continue to please passengers with their air service while United Airlines continues to struggle to satisfy customers.

According to the American Customer Satisfaction Index, the airline industry improved its overall customer satisfaction score by 3 percent to 69. However, it still has one of the lowest customer satisfaction rates of the industries surveyed, beating only subscription TV and Internet service.

"Crowded seating, rising ticket prices, extra fees and poor service all contribute to a rather dreary travel experience," says ACSI founder Claes Fornell. "Airlines continue to improve service for business travelers, which is important since they are the most profitable customer group. Still, their satisfaction remains at a level slightly below that of other passengers."

The survey is based on interviews with almost 9,000 customers contacted between January and March about their experiences. JetBlue's score of 83 placed it in the top spot of the airline industry.

Southwest increased its score by 5 percent as it has worked on integrating AirTran Airways which it purchased in 2011. Fort Worth-based American Airlines ranked third from the bottom with a satisfaction score of 65.

Passengers were very satisfied with airlines' on-time performance and the ease of the check-in process, according to the ACSI survey. Air travelers were less happy with seat comfort and the quality of in-flight services, the survey found.

Airline	2012 score	2013 score	% change
JetBlue	81	83	2
Southwest	77	81	5
All Others	74	72	-3
Delta	65	68	5
American	64	65	2
US Airways	65	64	-2
United	62	62	0
Entire industry	67	69	3

-Andrea Ahles

Delta carried the most passengers in 2012, BTS says

Delta Airlines carried the most passengers last year of any U.S. airline, according to a new report released on Tuesday.

However, Southwest Airlines had the most domestic passengers, more than any other carrier, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics said.

As an industry, U.S. airlines carried 0.8 percent more passengers in 2012 for a total of 736.6 million. Airlines carried 642.2 million passengers domestically, up 0.6 percent from the previous year while they carried 94.4 million passengers internationally, up 2.0 percent from 2011.

According to the BTS numbers, Fort Worth-based American Airlines ranked fourth. Third-place United Continental, which had several operational problems with its merger integration last spring, carried 3.4 percent fewer passengers in 2012.

The top three airports all increased their enplaned passenger numbers including third-ranked Dallas/Fort Worth Airport which had 1.6 percent more passengers for 27.5 million. Atlanta retained the top spot with 45.1 million passengers, up 3.2 percent while Chicago O'Hare had 29.9 million enplaned passengers.

Rank	Carrier	2012 Enplaned Passengers	2011 Enplaned Passengers	Pct. Change
1	Delta	116.445	113.485	2.6
2	Southwest**	112.234	110.587	1.5
3	UA/CO Combined***	92.367	95.611	-3.4
	United***	92.367	50.474	NA
	Continental	-	45.138	NA
4	American	86.335	86.042	0.3
5	US Airways	54.238	52.921	2.5
6	EV/XE Combined****	32.376	30.412	6.5
	ExpressJet****	32.376	16.194	NA
	Atlantic Southeast	-	14.218	NA
7	JetBlue	28.934	26.353	9.8
8	SkyWest	26.163	24.408	7.2
9	AirTran	21.745	24.596	-11.6
10	American Eagle	18.731	17.348	8.0

 

-Andrea Ahles

Over 3,000 flights cancelled Friday due to snowstorm Nemo

Airlines have cancelled over 3,000 flights on Friday in anticipation of snowstorm Nemo on the East Coast.

According to FlightStats, a website that tracks flights, airlines have cancelled hundreds of flights in and out of Boston's Logan airport, Newark Airport and LaGuardia and JFK airports in New York.

United Airlines has cancelled the most flights, with 328, as of 8:00 a.m. CST Friday. Dallas-based American Airlines has cancelled 156 flights while its regional carrier, American Eagle has cancelled 113 flights.

Dallas/Fort Worth Airport has 37 departures cancelled for Friday and is suggesting to travelers to check on their flight status before heading out to the airport.

Airlines have already preemptively cancelled 650 flights on Saturday although that number is likely to rise if the storm drops several inches of snow as weather forecasters are predicting.

-Andrea Ahles

Blog: The sad, "downward spiral of American Airlines"

A strong blog post this morning at Leeham, the site of longtime airline industry observer Scott Hamilton, on the dismal state of affairs at American Airlines.

We’ve been watching with dismay the downward spiral of American Airlines.

This once-great carrier is hardly recognizable any more. It is perplexing to us how a management team that got its training under Robert Crandall and helped create such a great carrier could have gone so wrong.

It's a well written, point-by-point critique of American's strategic errors under Crandall's successors. And it closes with a vote of no confidence in CEO Tom Horton's leadership.

Horton is firm that American won’t merge while in Chapter 11 and it’s pretty clear he doesn’t want to merge at all.

We have no confidence in Horton at the helm, nor in American’s management. If American is to survive, they have to go.

- Bob Cox

 

 

 

 

 

Don't blame the pilots: APA says American flight cutbacks due to management actions

American Airlines is cancelling flights and rebooking customers to get through the next couple of months but the airline's pilots want everyone to know that, contrary to rumors and some press reports, it's not their fault.

The Allied Pilots Association, the union representing American's pilots, today issued the following statement about American's actions:

“First of all, there is no job action of any sort that is organized, supported or sanctioned by the Allied Pilots Association.

 

“APA independently tracks the airline’s operational performance. We have verified that pilot sick rates have not deviated from normal historical rates. We have likewise verified that crew cancellations remain at normal rates.

“One area of increased operational unreliability we have observed is in mechanical delays, which isn’t surprising. Although American Airlines operates the oldest fleet of any major U.S. carrier, management has decided to furlough a large number of mechanics and close one of its largest maintenance facilities. Management also decided some time ago to reduce its inventory of spare parts.

“In addition, management halted the recalls of furloughed pilots late last year, which has resulted in an insufficient number of pilots to maintain the schedule properly.

“It’s also important to remember that management chose to reject the APA-American Airlines Collective Bargaining Agreement, which served as an operating manual for our pilots. Management’s action has generated significant uncertainty for our pilots with respect to employment protections and operating rules, which are now under management’s unilateral control.

“APA members are experienced professionals who conduct themselves as professionals under whatever circumstances they encounter. Any negative impact on our airline’s operational integrity is of management’s own making.”

- Bob Cox

 

Some AMR bondholders say American not taking care of planes

Some creditors of American Airlines say the airline isn't keeping up with the needed maintenance work on the airplanes that are the collateral for their bonds, Reuters reports.

The bondholders' agent, U.S. Bank, is expected to argue at a Thursday hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan that the airline unit of AMR Corp has neglected its planes, and failed to make hundreds of repairs.

They fear that this and other costs could force the value of the planes to sink too low to cover the bonds.

The value "will continue to erode as a result of the costs to insure, store, ferry, market and sell the aircraft," U.S. Bank said in court papers.

Most of the planes are older-model aircraft, including Boeing 757s and MD-82s and MD-83s made by McDonnell Douglas. Payment on the bonds is due Oct. 15.

Sean Collins, a spokesman for American Airlines, on Wednesday disputed the bank's claim, saying there has been "no change in American Airlines' maintenance policies and procedures that would impact the value of the aircraft."

U.S. Bank is seeking to bolster safeguards for the bonds under bankruptcy rules designed to protect secured creditors from declines in the value of collateral.

It wants to file a top-priority bankruptcy claim to ensure bondholders are paid ahead of other creditors, to offset any decrease in value from AMR's alleged delay in making nearly 500 repairs to cabins, engines and plane structures.

U.S. Bank believes it would fetch just $501 million - including $40 million of previously frozen cash collateral to which it seeks access - if it seized and sold the planes. That's barely above the $491 million in principal and interest that it said bondholders are owed.

But AMR said in court papers that U.S. Bank's request "borders on -- if not crosses the line of -- being frivolous."

- Bob Cox

 

 

United to perfect attendance employees: "And you get a car!"

United Airlines announced on Friday that it was giving away cars to 11 employees who had perfect attendance.

The carrier said that the 11 winners were selected randomly and each employee had perfect attendance during at least one of three six-month periods beginning in July, 2010. Thousands of employees were eligible, United said.

"Perfect attendant facilitates a work environment of dependability and trust, and enables us to provide our customers with consistent, reliable service," said United vice president of employee relations Donna Towle.

The winners chose between a Ford Explorer, a Ford Escape, a Ford Mustang and a Ford Focus and the company will pay all expenses with the car, including sales tax, title and license.

United said it has given away 180 new vehicles since its perfect attendance program began in 1996.

-Andrea Ahles

American and United must face federal trial in 9/11 lawsuit, judge says

American Airlines and United Continental Holdings must face a federal trial as part of a 9/11 lawsuit.

Bloomberg News reports that a district judge ruled that a trial is required over negligence claims tied to the hijackings of the airplanes that hit the World Trade Center.

World Trade Center Properties sued the airlines in 2008 saying the airlines were negligent in allowing terrorists to board and hijack the planes.

-Andrea Ahles

United computer systems down, affecting flights

Computer problems struck United Airlines again on Tuesday afternoon as the carrier's passenger reservation service went down, affecting flights across United's network.

"We have a network outage & are working to get systems back online. We'll update soon," the airline tweeted on Tuesday.

The airline, created from the merger of United and Continental Airlines in 2010, had several technical problems earlier this spring when it merged United's reservation system with Continental's program.

Some passengers have tweeted that checking in for flights is being done manually on Tuesday while others said they were stuck on the tarmac waiting for the system to come back up.

-Andrea Ahles

American to end New York-JFK to Brussels service in November

USA Today reports that Ameircan Airlines plans to drop its JFK to Brussels, Belgium service this fall, which would leave American's OneWorld alliance with no direct non-stop New York to Brussels flights.

Brussels would still be served from New York by Delta and India's Jet Airwaysout of JFK and United and Jet from Newark.

- Bob Cox