(4/19/99)
Report cards came out today for America's ten largest Airlines.
Charles Sherrill sums up the scores from our Washington bureau.
The annual rating of airline quality compiled from Transportation Department
data shows a 26 percent increase in consumer complaints in 1998.
The nation's ten largest airlines were graded for on-time performance.
- Southwest was best
- America West was worst
Involuntary denied boarding because of overbooking or for other reasons.
- Continental was best
- TWA was worst
Delayed, lost or damaged baggage.
- America West was best
- United was worst
And frequency of passenger complaints for various reasons:
- Northwest had the most
- Southwest the least
Headley says, "Given their corporate culture and their approach to flying, it's
usually a fairly fun event. So why wouldn't they have people who are fairly
happy when they're on the airplanes and when they get off?"
Overall rankings look like this:
- U.S. Airways
- Continental
- American
- Delta
- Southwest
- America West
- TWA
- Alaska
- Northwest
- United
The researchers say declining quality in the airline industry justifies new
legislation to protect passengers' rights. But they say that could lead to
higher prices and penalties for things like failing to cancel a reservation if
you don't show up for a flight.
Differences were not dramatic in the overall scores for the top six
airlines.
The bottom four were also tightly grouped but significantly lower than the
others.
