Tuesday, May 06, 2003
By Al Ketler
Admittedly, the rotten economy, the terrorists, the war and now SARS aren''t helping the airline carriers, but the downturn on the aviation travel industry started a long time before 9/11, and is just being exacerbated by the more recent nasties
It''s the arrogance of airlines that is forcing the flying public to other means of travel, or even the avoidance of travel unless absolutely necessary.
Air travel has become the travel means of last resort, rather than the first choice that it should be.
Whoever thought up the idea of offering cheaper fares only if one spends a Saturday night away and returns by Tuesday must have studied under Saddam.
Forcing a business traveler to give up a family weekend in order to afford a flight is unconscionable. Putting people on planes Saturday morning with their teeth clenched can''t be good for the balance sheet.
A seat should be a seat, regardless of the name on the ticket. Airlines force us to buy tickets weeks in advance to get anything close to a reasonable fare, then forbid the substitution of another person without a stiff cost penalty.
I''d buy a book of tickets in advance if they could be used any time -- rescheduling, renaming and refunding as things change. But, that''s not the way it works. They blame the war!
Allowing one operator to monopolize a city''s airport is anti-competitive.
These facilities are built with public funds, and they should admit all carriers. The hub carrier now has no competition, and its fares are astronomically high.Who can afford to pay $800 to fly to Dallas on short notice? So, I spend hours driving to Cleveland for a Southwest flight at a third of the cost.
Whatever became of competition, salesmanship, serving the customer? They blame the economy!
The ultimate violation of free trade is that airlines won''t route you on competing airlines. I am forced to fly on one airline, end to end, even if it means zigzagging between odd hub/feeder cities just to avoid sharing a fare with more direct carriers.
Talk about shooting yourself in the foot! This is downright shortsighted. They blame SARS!
Lying is a popular sport with airline relations. Blame the weather, blame mechanical failures, blame traffic, blame (you name it), but never admit that the plane won''t depart unless it''s full enough to be profitable.
Nearly empty flights are often canceled, forcing passengers to deplane and wait for a later flight. Yeah, there was a storm in St. Louis -- right!
They just herd us back into the terminal, regardless of the passenger inconvenience. Some service!
The U.S. airline industry used to be a beautiful institution -- the envy of the world. Efficient and safe, with courteous service, on-time departures, multicarrier routing and tradeable and refundable ticketing.
I remember free upgrades when a first-class seat was vacant.
I recall when even coach travelers got a free cocktail and something more than a bag of peanuts to munch on.
These niceties didn''t cost a lot, but they sure perked up a weary traveler.
Now, unused upgrades are scarfed up by airline employees and friends, and you can forget the amenities.
Service is no longer in the airline vocabulary. Persuasion has been replaced with arrogance and stiff-arming. Take it or leave it. The public despises the self-serving rules, and -- golly, what a surprise -- no one wants to fly anymore.
Don''t blame the economy, war, terrorists, diseases, etc. In my view, poorly managed airlines shouldn''t look for government bailouts with public funds when they will just revert to business as usual. Try really serving the public.
If you change your mind? No problem, exchange tickets and off you go in another direction.
Airline travel has become the travel mode of last resort. People now risk their lives driving down Interstate 95 in a sea of traffic.
My advice for airlines is to get back on the U.S. success program. Start acting like competitive businesses.
We want to fly, but not on your horrendous terms.
I''m tired of the demands for airline bailouts and concessions. Airline business is down, like every other business these days. But handouts aren''t the solution. The bigger problem with airlines is that the bad times are not going away until they change their ways.
Start wooing the public like every successful business in America. Get your fares in line. Be glad for our business. Focus on the high-volume middle class, not the upper crust. Southwest Airlines is making money. Good for them!
By Al Ketler
Admittedly, the rotten economy, the terrorists, the war and now SARS aren''t helping the airline carriers, but the downturn on the aviation travel industry started a long time before 9/11, and is just being exacerbated by the more recent nasties
It''s the arrogance of airlines that is forcing the flying public to other means of travel, or even the avoidance of travel unless absolutely necessary.
Air travel has become the travel means of last resort, rather than the first choice that it should be.
Whoever thought up the idea of offering cheaper fares only if one spends a Saturday night away and returns by Tuesday must have studied under Saddam.
Forcing a business traveler to give up a family weekend in order to afford a flight is unconscionable. Putting people on planes Saturday morning with their teeth clenched can''t be good for the balance sheet.
A seat should be a seat, regardless of the name on the ticket. Airlines force us to buy tickets weeks in advance to get anything close to a reasonable fare, then forbid the substitution of another person without a stiff cost penalty.
I''d buy a book of tickets in advance if they could be used any time -- rescheduling, renaming and refunding as things change. But, that''s not the way it works. They blame the war!
Allowing one operator to monopolize a city''s airport is anti-competitive.
These facilities are built with public funds, and they should admit all carriers. The hub carrier now has no competition, and its fares are astronomically high.Who can afford to pay $800 to fly to Dallas on short notice? So, I spend hours driving to Cleveland for a Southwest flight at a third of the cost.
Whatever became of competition, salesmanship, serving the customer? They blame the economy!
The ultimate violation of free trade is that airlines won''t route you on competing airlines. I am forced to fly on one airline, end to end, even if it means zigzagging between odd hub/feeder cities just to avoid sharing a fare with more direct carriers.
Talk about shooting yourself in the foot! This is downright shortsighted. They blame SARS!
Lying is a popular sport with airline relations. Blame the weather, blame mechanical failures, blame traffic, blame (you name it), but never admit that the plane won''t depart unless it''s full enough to be profitable.
Nearly empty flights are often canceled, forcing passengers to deplane and wait for a later flight. Yeah, there was a storm in St. Louis -- right!
They just herd us back into the terminal, regardless of the passenger inconvenience. Some service!
The U.S. airline industry used to be a beautiful institution -- the envy of the world. Efficient and safe, with courteous service, on-time departures, multicarrier routing and tradeable and refundable ticketing.
I remember free upgrades when a first-class seat was vacant.
I recall when even coach travelers got a free cocktail and something more than a bag of peanuts to munch on.
These niceties didn''t cost a lot, but they sure perked up a weary traveler.
Now, unused upgrades are scarfed up by airline employees and friends, and you can forget the amenities.
Service is no longer in the airline vocabulary. Persuasion has been replaced with arrogance and stiff-arming. Take it or leave it. The public despises the self-serving rules, and -- golly, what a surprise -- no one wants to fly anymore.
Don''t blame the economy, war, terrorists, diseases, etc. In my view, poorly managed airlines shouldn''t look for government bailouts with public funds when they will just revert to business as usual. Try really serving the public.
If you change your mind? No problem, exchange tickets and off you go in another direction.
Airline travel has become the travel mode of last resort. People now risk their lives driving down Interstate 95 in a sea of traffic.
My advice for airlines is to get back on the U.S. success program. Start acting like competitive businesses.
We want to fly, but not on your horrendous terms.
I''m tired of the demands for airline bailouts and concessions. Airline business is down, like every other business these days. But handouts aren''t the solution. The bigger problem with airlines is that the bad times are not going away until they change their ways.
Start wooing the public like every successful business in America. Get your fares in line. Be glad for our business. Focus on the high-volume middle class, not the upper crust. Southwest Airlines is making money. Good for them!