Tuesday, March 15, 2005
Northwest passenger satisfaction ranked last
The airline disputes a J.D. Power survey that says it is worst of 11 major U.S. carriers.
By Joel J. Smith / The Detroit News
Related reports
J.D. Power airline ratings
2004 Airline Quality Rating
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Northwest Airlines finished worst among 11 major U.S. air carriers in a customer satisfaction survey released Monday by J.D. Power and Associates.
The survey rated airlines in five categories -- check-in/boarding/departing process, flight reservation/scheduling process, aircraft interior, in-flight amenities and flight crew.
Northwest finished 10th or 11th in every category, said Linda Himeise, J.D. Power's executive director of travel industry research. More than 200 Northwest passengers were questioned for the survey, conducted between May and October 2004.
"From the passenger prospective, Northwest has a problem," Himeise said.
Brenda Harahan of Birmingham, who flew Northwest back from Philadelphia on Sunday, said the airline's customer service has plummeted.
"Maybe it's because the airline keeps cutting back." she said. "But the customers are feeling it every time they fly."
Discount-favorite JetBlue Airways topped the survey followed by fellow low-cost carrier, Southwest Airlines. The survey was taken before Northwest announced it would no longer offer free food and complimentary pillows on many domestic flights.
Northwest officials said the new survey doesn't take into account important factors such as on-time performance.
Northwest had the second-best on-time performance in 2004 among major carriers, according to U.S. Department of Transportation data.
"Although 2004 saw a significant increase in airline travel, many major carriers have had to revisit their business models to remain competitive," Himeise said.
"Dissatisfaction with a lack of amenities is an area the industry needs to keep a close eye on as more carriers reduce the offerings in favor of lower operating costs."
Terry Trippler, a Minneapolis-based analyst, said many fliers may be judging Northwest more harshly because the airline once offered some the industry's best amenities but made cutbacks after posting deep financial losses.
Northwest has eliminated most in-flight movies and full food service, and now charges customers a fee to book tickets over the telephone or at the airport ticket counter.
"When you don't offer any amenities to begin with like JetBlue and Southwest, their passengers don't see anything taken away from them," Trippler said. "I was shocked and don't believe the survey. I would have put Northwest near the top."
JetBlue finished with 783 points out of a possible 1,000 compared to Northwest with 618 points. The industry's average was 664.
"Customer satisfaction is very important to Northwest and we are continuing to work to provide the service all of our customers deserve and expect," said Mary Stanik, a Northwest spokeswoman. "But not all of Northwest's frequent passengers are happy with the airline.
"You just don't get any service now," said Harahan, the Northwest passenger. "You use to be able to watch movies or listen to music. You can't even do that in first class anymore. They've taken the pillows away and probably the blankets will be next."
Himeise said the 3,100 passengers were interviewed for the J.D. Power survey and that the number was more than sufficient to get accurate results.
The most frequent complaints included lack of legroom, few amenities, seat comfort, timely bag retrieval and lack of frequent in-flight updates, Himeise said. Conversely, passengers were mostly satisfied reservations systems and courtesy employees.
In the last Airline Quality Rating released by Dean Headley of Wichita State University, Northwest climbed from ninth to sixth place among 14 major airlines. A new report is scheduled for release in April.
Another airline analyst questioned J.D. Power's credibility, calling its survey sample too small compared with Northwest's volume of service. The airline boarded more than 55 million passengers in 2004.
"It seems a little light to me," said Michael Boyd, president of the Boyd Group in Evergreen, Colo., an airline consulting company. "The survey says that people are waiting an average of 7.2 minutes to check in at an airport kiosk. I've never waited more than a few seconds at Northwest.
"I'm just not sure this survey is valid. When you have an airline that flies from Frankfurt to Tokyo and everything in between, the number of Northwest people they interviewed wouldn't fill a DC-10. That isn't a valid sample."
You can reach Joel J. Smith at (313) 222-2556 or [email protected].
Northwest passenger satisfaction ranked last
The airline disputes a J.D. Power survey that says it is worst of 11 major U.S. carriers.
By Joel J. Smith / The Detroit News
Related reports
J.D. Power airline ratings
2004 Airline Quality Rating
Comment on this story
Send this story to a friend
Get Home Delivery
Northwest Airlines finished worst among 11 major U.S. air carriers in a customer satisfaction survey released Monday by J.D. Power and Associates.
The survey rated airlines in five categories -- check-in/boarding/departing process, flight reservation/scheduling process, aircraft interior, in-flight amenities and flight crew.
Northwest finished 10th or 11th in every category, said Linda Himeise, J.D. Power's executive director of travel industry research. More than 200 Northwest passengers were questioned for the survey, conducted between May and October 2004.
"From the passenger prospective, Northwest has a problem," Himeise said.
Brenda Harahan of Birmingham, who flew Northwest back from Philadelphia on Sunday, said the airline's customer service has plummeted.
"Maybe it's because the airline keeps cutting back." she said. "But the customers are feeling it every time they fly."
Discount-favorite JetBlue Airways topped the survey followed by fellow low-cost carrier, Southwest Airlines. The survey was taken before Northwest announced it would no longer offer free food and complimentary pillows on many domestic flights.
Northwest officials said the new survey doesn't take into account important factors such as on-time performance.
Northwest had the second-best on-time performance in 2004 among major carriers, according to U.S. Department of Transportation data.
"Although 2004 saw a significant increase in airline travel, many major carriers have had to revisit their business models to remain competitive," Himeise said.
"Dissatisfaction with a lack of amenities is an area the industry needs to keep a close eye on as more carriers reduce the offerings in favor of lower operating costs."
Terry Trippler, a Minneapolis-based analyst, said many fliers may be judging Northwest more harshly because the airline once offered some the industry's best amenities but made cutbacks after posting deep financial losses.
Northwest has eliminated most in-flight movies and full food service, and now charges customers a fee to book tickets over the telephone or at the airport ticket counter.
"When you don't offer any amenities to begin with like JetBlue and Southwest, their passengers don't see anything taken away from them," Trippler said. "I was shocked and don't believe the survey. I would have put Northwest near the top."
JetBlue finished with 783 points out of a possible 1,000 compared to Northwest with 618 points. The industry's average was 664.
"Customer satisfaction is very important to Northwest and we are continuing to work to provide the service all of our customers deserve and expect," said Mary Stanik, a Northwest spokeswoman. "But not all of Northwest's frequent passengers are happy with the airline.
"You just don't get any service now," said Harahan, the Northwest passenger. "You use to be able to watch movies or listen to music. You can't even do that in first class anymore. They've taken the pillows away and probably the blankets will be next."
Himeise said the 3,100 passengers were interviewed for the J.D. Power survey and that the number was more than sufficient to get accurate results.
The most frequent complaints included lack of legroom, few amenities, seat comfort, timely bag retrieval and lack of frequent in-flight updates, Himeise said. Conversely, passengers were mostly satisfied reservations systems and courtesy employees.
In the last Airline Quality Rating released by Dean Headley of Wichita State University, Northwest climbed from ninth to sixth place among 14 major airlines. A new report is scheduled for release in April.
Another airline analyst questioned J.D. Power's credibility, calling its survey sample too small compared with Northwest's volume of service. The airline boarded more than 55 million passengers in 2004.
"It seems a little light to me," said Michael Boyd, president of the Boyd Group in Evergreen, Colo., an airline consulting company. "The survey says that people are waiting an average of 7.2 minutes to check in at an airport kiosk. I've never waited more than a few seconds at Northwest.
"I'm just not sure this survey is valid. When you have an airline that flies from Frankfurt to Tokyo and everything in between, the number of Northwest people they interviewed wouldn't fill a DC-10. That isn't a valid sample."
You can reach Joel J. Smith at (313) 222-2556 or [email protected].
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