"Editorial: Smoother rides start with Congress"

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Editorial
Smoother rides start with Congress 
The Daytona Beach (FL) News-Journal


Nearly everybody has a story. About the time they tried to fly from Daytona
Beach to New York and ended up spending the night in Chicago.

About the time they sat on the tarmac for two hours with no air conditioning
and an understandably (and vocally) annoyed baby a few rows back.

About the time they arrived in Los Angeles only to discover that their
luggage was in Colorado Springs.

Air travel has always been a bit of a gamble, and most Americans have come
to accept a certain amount of risk when they fly. But lately, the chance of
something going wrong has been climbing. In the first half of 2007, one in
four flights arrived late -- the worst on-time performance since the Federal
Aviation Administration started keeping track in 1996. Meanwhile, tension
mounts between passengers, airlines and federal authorities to fix this
mess.

There's no simple answer. It's easy enough to blame the airlines -- and they
certainly are partly culpable for the miserable uncertainty of air travel.
But passengers have developed expectations that many experts say are
unrealistic. Meanwhile, federal aviation infrastructure is undeniably
overloaded, particularly at the nation's giant "hub" airports like Atlanta-

Hartsfield, Dallas-Fort Worth and most particularly John F. Kennedy Airport
in New York City. A problem at one of these airports can snarl air traffic
throughout the country.

President Bush asked the FAA, consumer groups and airline officials from
around the country to come up with solutions to the most pressing problems
by the end of the year. Most already agree that progress relies on a few
basic changes in the nation's air-travel system:

AIR TRAVELERS' BILL OF RIGHTS

The U.S. House and Senate should pass legislation that includes basic
elements, such as provision of "basic needs" (water, restrooms and/or the
ability to "deplane") for passengers trapped on a nonmoving plane,
compensation for significantly delayed flights and open record-keeping about
an airline's record of delays and missed connections. Airlines should tell
passengers the truth about delays, including cause and expected duration.

MODERNIZE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

The FAA has been sounding the warning for years about the inadequacies of
the current control system, blaming it for the majority of flight delays
around the nation. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is testing a
flight-control system that uses GPS satellites to track airplanes,
technology that allows planes to land and take off more quickly. This would
maximize the nation's existing landing strips. The FAA suggests an increase
in fees for so-called "general aviation" (noncommercial flights including
hobbyists, freight and corporate jets). Congress may decide to spread some
of the cost to commercial carriers as well -- but the more important task is
to start modernizing as soon as possible.

BETTER USE OF REGIONAL AIRPORTS

The airlines' preferred hub-and-spoke system has created significant
overload at the largest airports. Congress should push carriers to consider
spreading that traffic to well-equipped smaller airports near popular metro
areas -- like Daytona Beach International and Orlando-Sanford International
airports. That diversion won't work, however, if airlines continue to funnel
all those regional flights right back to giant hubs.

The alternatives to inaction are ghastly. Federal air marshals reported last
month that incidents of air rage -- out-of-control behavior in the cabin or
boarding area of an airplane -- are on the increase. President Bush and
federal officials are right to put a priority on reclaiming the friendly
skies.

3 Recent Low Points in Air Travel

OCT. 7: Spirit Airlines cancels a scheduled flight to New York, stranding
more than 150 in Fort Lauderdale overnight after letting them sit in a
grounded airplane for an hour. Passengers say the airline charged them for
drinks while they were waiting, and that the situation escalated into a
scene of "fighting, scheming, cursing, " according to CBS. Airline officials
blamed a delayed flight from Puerto Rico and mechanical problems with
another plane, and said all passengers were offered some compensation.

JULY 3: Kyla Ebbert of San Diego was on her way to Tucson, Ariz., for a
medical appointment. Ebbert says she was seated when a male flight attendant
called her to the front of the airplane and lectured her, in front of other
passengers, that she was dressed too provocatively and would have to leave
the flight. After she started crying, she said, she was allowed to retake
her seat. Many who saw her model the outfit (short white skirt, white top
and green cardigan) on national news programs say it wasn't nearly skimpy
enough to rate that kind of humiliation. Southwest has since apologized --
sort of -- in a public statement that also bragged about the airline's
"miniskirt fares."

JUNE: Kate Penland and her 19-month-old son Garron were removed from a plane
at George Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston, after a confrontation with
a Continental ExpressJet flight attendant. Penland and her son had been
stuck at the Houston airport for 11 hours. According to witnesses, a flight
attendant confronted Penland because Garron was looking out the window
saying "bye-bye plane" during a safety presentation. (All witnesses agreed
the toddler was not crying or throwing a tantrum.) The flight attendant
suggested that Penland quiet her son with drugs. Penland refused and was
deplaned.

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