The Air Travel Industry Grows More Turbulent
Monday, August 06, 2007PAUL KANGAS: Meanwhile, current U.S. carriers had a rough go of it in June with nearly a third of all flights delayed. The Department of Transportation says on-time performance in the first six months of the year was the worst since 1995. As Stephanie Dhue reports, passengers are paying the price.
STEPHANIE DHUE, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: You don't have to be a hardened air traveler to know it's a tough time to fly. Just ask five-year old Jackie, whose flight was canceled.
UNIDENTIFIED CHILD: We were supposed to be a little bit early before my bedtime, but now we're going to be past my bedtime.
DHUE: More flights are late or canceled, more bags have been lost and more people are missing connections this summer than last. Travelers are feeling the stress.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All kinds of security lines. If you can take the train, take the train.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I wish the service would have been better.
DHUE: More people are complaining about airline service. The Department of Transportation has received more than 6,000 complaints in the first half of this year. That's a 47 percent increase from the same time a year ago. Nearly a third of all flights were delayed. And the number of mishandled bags increased to 7.34 per 1,000 passengers, versus a 5.86 rate last year. The DOT says the airlines had problems with crews and maintenance. But the biggest causes for delays are weather, followed by an overwhelmed air traffic control system. Bill Conners, who represents business travel managers and the airlines, says an overhaul is overdue.
BILL CONNORS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NATIONAL BUSINESS TRAVEL ASSOCIATION: This is a 1950s system that is basically out of date. There are technologies now that can increase the spacing of planes, lessen the congestion. But this nation has to make a serious decision about whether or not it's going to invest in its transportation infrastructure.
DHUE: Analysts say it will be a decade before a new air travel system could be in place. In the meantime, airline consultant Randy Babbitt expects to see carriers compete less on price and more on service.
RANDY BABBITT, CEO, ECLAT CONSULTING: I do think that the marketplace is going to bring a solution, where carriers are going to devote more space to first class. They are going to -- you're going to see carriers popping up with increasing numbers that won't do anything but offer business class or first class service.
DHUE: With more people flying and the air transportation system at capacity, analysts expect delays, cancellations and the headaches that go with them to get worse. Stephanie Dhue, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT, Reagan Washington National airport.
