News
AirTran tops for passengers in 2011
April 2, 2012, Washington, D.C. - For the second year in a row, low-cost carrier AirTran Airways did the best job getting passengers to their destinations with the least hassle, private researchers who have analyzed federal data on U.S. airline performance said Monday.
April 2, 2012 By Carey Fredericks
Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue Airways also repeated their performance from last year, ranking second and third, respectively. Regional carrier American Eagle was last among the U.S.'s 15 largest airlines included in the annual report.
The rankings are based on data airlines supply the Department of Transportation regarding lost bags, delayed flights, and bumpings from full planes, and consumer complaints made to the department.
Overall, the report shows flying is getting better even through passengers grappling with fare increases, cancelled routes and a seemingly endless parade of new fees may not feel that way, said Dean Headley, a business professor at Wichita State University who has co-written the annual report for 22 years.
U.S. airlines are slowly, steadily recovering from their meltdown five years ago, when, under the strain of near-record consumer travel demand, their performance tanked, he said. Industry performance for all four measurements was slightly better in 2011 compared with 2010.
"Airlines are finally catching up with what their promise is, which is getting you there on time 80 per cent of the time with your bags,'' Headley said.
"They realize that people are paying a lot more money, and the system is more complex than it was, and they have to do a better job,'' he said. "To their credit, I think they are doing a better job.''
With higher fuel costs, airfares are trending up, although increases vary significantly depending on whether the passenger is flying between major airports, or is heading to or from a small or medium-sized airport, Headley said. As airlines cut back service to smaller airports, the cost of air travel in small and medium cities
is increasing, he said.
In judging quality of performance, low-cost carriers that mainly fly between large hubs tend to fare the best, Headley said. The large airlines that have been around since before airline deregulation in the early 1980s tend to fall in the middle. Regional airlines, which often fly smaller planes and are more susceptible to
weather delays, generally pull up the rear.
Airline performance last year was likely helped by a mild winter in much of the U.S. despite an "October surprise'' snowstorm that snarled the Northeast, he said.
The overall rankings in order were: AirTran, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Frontier Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, US Airways, SkyWest Airlines, American Airlines, Continental Airlines, United Airlines, Atlantic Southeast Airlines, Mesa Airlines, and American Eagle.
AirTran was acquired by the Southwest Airlines Co. last year.
