South Flights

Although all airlines make at least some attempt to offer consumers low fares, JetBlue and Southwest Airlines have the best customer service, according to consumers. In a study recently released by Consumer Reports, travelers were asked about their opinions on various airlines. Southwest Airlines came out on top, and JetBlue closely followed behind. American Airlines was voted in last place, with Delta Airlines fairly only slightly better.

By Far, Southwest Airlines offers some of the lowest fares in the country, and the company also allows travelers to check in two pieces of luggage for free. Nearly every other airline has been accused of charging erroneous baggage handling fees. It appears that the only thing that Southwest Airlines is missing is in-flight entertainment. Passengers do have the luxury of sitting in comfortable seating, however, there are no movies shown on Southwest Airlines flights.

Another question that passengers were asked revolves around the level of service provided by cabin crew members. Out of the nine airlines that were featured, US Airways was noted to have provided the worst in-flight cabin crews. Although all of the questions that were asked were weighed equally, it seems that roomy seats and low ticket prices are valued most by consumers. A few years ago the media made a big deal out of the fact that Southwest Airlines did not provide in-flight movies or any other forms of entertainment. Seemingly, most money conscious travelers are much happier to forgo movies for safe, comfortable and inexpensive airline tickets.

While financial expects the cost of gas to increase to $5 a gallon by the summer, it seems that airlines are already taking a proactive approach. Fares have been increasing slowly but steadily despite the fact that airline ticket bookings have been up. In fact, average ticket prices have increased by approximately $10 in just the last few weeks. Consumers will have no choice but to deal with the increasing costs.

The fact is, most airline companies do not divulge how and why they increase ticket prices. Speculation aside, airlines also increase fares when they plan to go on hiring sprees and renovate their planes. Travelers will be able to find deals during the summer months, but the deals may not be as good this year as they have in the past. For instance, some national airlines are able to corner the market in select airports. When travelers only have one or two airline companies to choose from, the end result is usually higher fares.

Although millions of US citizens are expected to go on vacation this summer, many are considering alternative forms of transportation. Bus lines and train companies are pricing their ticket prices to be in line with air travel costs. Fewer travelers will be taking to the roads as both the price of gas and tolls has increased. Airline companies can always choose to lower fares at the last minute if they think that travelers are not responding positively by the increased airline ticket prices, but current prices will remain intact for at least the next few months.

As one of the biggest travel companies in the world, consumers expect to be able to find American Airlines tickets on the popular fare comparison website Expedia. Unfortunately, Expedia has decided to cease doing business with American Airlines, effective immediately. When the airline company began to competitively market airline tickets rather than pay Expedia for booking airline tickets, the online travel portal struck back. Flight and ticket information can be found on every other major airline via Expedia, which may lead to trouble in the future.

Expedia has been trying to hang onto the number one spot, however, other online vacation portals are becoming more popular. Airlines such as American Airlines have complained about the virtual monopoly that Expedia had for years, but now the company is working with other airline booking companies. It is likely that American Airlines will be able to offer consumers better discounts when they book their flights directly through their websites. On the other hand, travelers are used to visiting price comparison companies in an effort to get the best prices on vacation packages. Unless American Airlines teams up with car rental companies and major hotel chains, there is a good chance that consumers will opt to go with another airline.

This is the second large price comparison company that has stopped working with American Airlines. Previously, Orbitz dropped American Airlines after the two companies had a dispute. Approximately 33% of US travelers use these services to buy airline tickets, look up schedules and compare fares.

Typically, airports and airlines are well equipped to deal with inclement weather, and passengers are aware of the fact that delays and canceled flights are sometimes unavoidable. However, the snow storm that just hit the east coast has put virtually all air traffic at a standstill. Between Boston and Philadelphia, more than 10 inches of snow has already fallen. Travelers with big plans for New Year’s Eve have been forced to take shelter in nearby hotels.

Airport officials warned of the storm before it hit, but even they were unable to imagine the full extent of beating that the Eastern Seaborg would take. Nearly 1,000 flights have been canceled as the severe snowstorm continues to make its way up the coast. Among the airports hit hardest; Newark Liberty International Airport, Philadelphia International Airport and Boston Logan International Airport.

In some states a state of emergency has been put into effect. Thousands of travelers have been camping out at airports because road conditions are treacherous. Entire families have taken refuge in airport lobbies with the hopes that flight conditions will soon improve.
Most of the airports that have been impacted expect to be fully operational by Monday. Some flights will resume on a limited basis, however, airways will need to be cleared and planes will have to be de-iced. With the storm on its way to Canada, air travel into this country will be severely impacted. Although the storm is a big inconvenience, most travelers have taken the delays in good stride.

Surprisingly, the number of international travelers has been steadily increasing every year despite the financial crisis. In the US, airlines have no actively been hiring, and close to 7,000 jobs have already been cut. While most passengers have probably not noticed a difference, the move could be problematic during the holiday travel season. With fewer pilots and flight attendants available, existing employees will have to worker longer hours in order to make up for the difference.

Some airline companies are trimming costs wherever they can, but the end result may cause travelers to be further inconvenienced. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, jobs in the airline industry fell by nearly 2% from August of 2009 to August of 2010. On top of there being fewer support staff on board flights, there are also fewer employees working at airports across the US.

For the past two years, the airline industry has been laying off workers in unprecedented amounts. By contrast, Delta Airlines has increased jobs by approximately 6%, but this is the only airline that actively been hiring. Fares are higher and some airlines have stopping flying into select airports. Other international airlines have been using this opportunity to entice American travelers.

Financial analysts are unsure of when the industry will begin to pick up again. Some speculate that the airline job market will begin to improve when summer travel season starts, but most airlines will only be hiring part-time or seasonal workers. If the state of the economy is more promising by the summer, airline companies may have enough confidence to start to hire more full-time employees again.

In order to win back lost customers, British Airlines plans on offering heavily discounted airline tickets. Most major airline companies hold sales during the summer months because it is the busiest time of the year. After British Airlines canceled thousands of flights due to the on again off again threat of a massive strike, travelers began to depend on other airlines. In fact, British Airlines has canceled thousands of flights over the last few months.

As a result, British Airlines lost millions of dollars in revenue. Now, the only questions left are when British Airlines will officially announce the sale and how the company will be able to settle its pay dispute with workers. British Airlines went through similar troubles in 2007 when their staff threatened to strike and then canceled their plans at the last minute.

Because other major airlines are expected to sell airline tickets at a discount this summer, British Airlines has not choice but to beat their prices. From the consumer’s perspective, buying low priced airline tickets from British Airlines is a bit of a gamble. Their flights can be canceled at a moment’s notice, which would cause travelers to have to scramble to find alternative airline carriers.
All in all, this year’s summer season just may be British Airlines’ worst. The company will have to give in their at least some of their employees demands, and they will take another hit when they put fares on sale. Travelers also suffer because they are left with fewer transportation options.

Airline passengers have long complained of being held on airplanes because of delays. Sometimes the communication is so poor that passengers become enraged, fatigued and frightened. On a recent JetBlue flight to Cancun, passengers were stuck for several hours without any type of refreshments. The Obama administration has decided to fine airlines to the tune of $27,000 per passengers if it is found that they were held on board airplanes without food or water for more than two hours.

Of course, both passengers and the federal government understand that delays are unavoidable. The main problem stems from the fact that travel during the winter months and inclement weather can ground airplanes for several hours at a time. Many airlines would rather delay takeoff than cancel flights altogether, and if a plane has already boarded then the passengers are just stuck.

Airlines are not happy about the new rules. According to some airline representatives, the fines are so steep that the entire industry would have to go through a change. On the other hand, airline passenger
rights advocates couldn’t be more pleased. For years, passengers have forced to sit on airplanes and suffer in poor conditions. Some passengers on board these flights have had their medical conditions exasperated by lengthy delays.

Although airlines try to do everything within their power to avoid delays, they will need to work even harder to keep their passengers safe and comfortable. As several airline companies are already struggling to stay afloat, a series of delayed flights could cause them to fall into dire straights.