"What's up with the perception of big airlines?"

Wednesday, May 12, 2004

What's up with the perception of big airlines?
By Ellen Creager
Knight Ridder News


Let's say you go out with Elmer Fudd. He takes you to visit a rabbit hole.
Will you be disappointed? No, because that's what you expect from Elmer
Fudd. 

Now, let's say you go out with Ashton Kutcher. You thought he was high
class, but he takes you to the same rabbit hole Elmer Fudd did. What a
disappointment! You expected more. 

That, my friends, is what has happened to air travel: All the airlines, even
the formerly Ashton Kutcher ones, have turned into Elmer Fudds. 

Once, the big airlines were profitable icons with real forks and wide seats.
Comfortable and confident crews made even passengers in coach class feel
happy to be flying. 

But when bad times came and the big airlines had to hack away all the classy
stuff, passengers got crabby. 

Why? No matter how many years go by, we still expect more from a big
airline. 

There's a gap between our expectations and their delivery. 

This disillusionment probably is a factor in the dismal showing by big
airlines in a new passenger survey. 

Airline Quality Ratings ranked airlines on 15 criteria, including
complaints, staff courtesy and on-time records. 

The highest-rated? JetBlue, Alaska, Southwest and America West. 

Each combined low price with excellent service, passengers said. The image
of these airlines was of a good deal, a nice ride and a helpful staff. 

U.S. Airways and Northwest were the highest-ranked big airlines, finishing
fifth and sixth. 

American and Delta, once glowing stars, finished near the bottom at 11th and
12th. 

After months of frequent flying, I have concluded three things: All airlines
have good and bad days. Full flights are stressful, no matter the carrier.
And morale does seem higher among the staff of smaller airlines. 

That last one is probably what passengers notice most. 

Cheerful service is worth a whole lot in these scary times. (So is
smallness, when it will keep you off the radar of the world's bad guys.) 

Now, maybe I'm an old crank, but personally I prefer world-weary competence
to newbie cheerfulness. Maybe I feel for the veteran crews who have had
coworkers laid off, pensions disappear, planes attacked and who have to
watch some scrappy little airline steal their business. 

But travelers are not interested in all this psychology stuff. They want the
best service at the best price, period. 

Aviation Economics reports that there have been 53 start-ups worldwide since
Sept. 11, most of them niche airlines with bargain prices. 

I'm all in favor of free enterprise and competition. When Spirit starts
flying soon to Washington, D.C., National, you betcha it will bring
Northwest's prices down. 

But I'm still suspicious when a flight to Italy costs less than a one-way
bus ticket to Kalamazoo. 

For instance, British start-up Ryanair charges just $27.50 for a London to
Rome flight - $1 less than the Detroit-K'zoo Greyhound bus. 

I don't care how feisty the airline is, how cheery the crew or how quickly
they get there. 

What kind of plane can they fly for $29? What's in the gas tank, Karo syrup?
And what wascally wabbit has Elmer Fudd at the controls?


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