By Charisse Jones
Alaska Airlines is one of the best performing.Credit: iStock
Virgin America was number one in overall performance for the fourth year in a row, according to the 2016 Airline Quality Rating.
The 26th annual report released Monday noted that industry wide, US airline performance got better in three of four key categories in 2015. But the flying public still filed complaints at a rate not seen in at least 15 years.
"Generally speaking, the system works,'' said Dean Headley, co-author of the report, and associate professor of marketing at Wichita State University's W. Frank Barton School of Business. But "while (airlines) got better in those three areas, most of that is not going to be noticeable by a particular consumer unless they lose their bag or get bumped off an airplane.''
JetBlue and Delta grabbed the number two and three spots behind Virgin America, while Alaska, which announced Monday that it plans to buy Virgin America for $2.6 billion, came in at number five.
The rating ), which is based on data from the Department of Transportation's monthly Air Travel Consumer Report,found that collectively U.S. carriers did a better job last year of landing flights on time, handling baggage, and making sure everyone who had a ticket for a given flight was able to get on board.
Overall, 79.9% of flights landed on schedule last year, vs. 76.2% in 2014. Nine of 13 carriers, including United, Southwest, American and Delta, improved their on-time arrival rate over the previous year. Hawaiian Airlines was the most punctual with an on time rate of 88.4%, while Spirit was at the bottom, with 69% of its flights touching down on schedule.
The industry lost, damaged, delayed or pilfered 3.24 bags per 1,000 fliers in 2015, down from 3.62 the previous year. Virgin America had the best record handling baggage. The Burlingame,California-based carrier mishandled 0.84 pieces of luggage per 1,000 customers. Regional carrier Envoy had the worst record, improperly handling 8.52 bags per 1,000 fliers. ExpressJet, with 5.06 mishandled bags per 1,000 fliers, and SkyWest with a rate of 4.05, had the second and third-worst track records behind Envoy.
And the rate of involuntary denied boardings - when a passenger loses their seat because the flight has been oversold - dropped significantly for US carriers, to a rate of 0.76 per 10,000 fliers vs. 0.92 the previous year.
"Given that the industry is getting more complex, and more people are flying, it says at least the industry is trying to do the right thing,'' Headley says.
Still, performance varied, sometimes widely, by airline. For instance JetBlue's denied boarding rate was the lowest in 2015, at 0.02 per 10,000 passengers, while Envoy Air had the worst record, with a rate of 2.35 per 10,000 fliers. "Some airlines focus on different things,'' Headley says. At "JetBlue, this is part of their corporate philosophy and culture ... It also tells me if they figured out how to make that not happen, why can't more?'' airlines do the same.
The worst performers tended to be regional and low cost carriers. No-frills Spirit, which charges to carry on a bag or to even select your own seat, had the highest complaint rate, with 11.73 per 100,000 fliers. Alaska Airlines had the lowest rate of complaints, .50 per 100,000 fliers.
The regional carriers tend to ferry passengers from smaller markets into larger hubs, putting them farther away from their main base if, for instance, a plane has a mechanical issue that needs to be addressed, Headley says. "The Envoys and the ExpressJets tend to fly those types of routes," he says. "That's their role. So they're inherently going to have a few more problems with performance outcomes than those who fly out of hubs."
But passengers seem to feel that across the board, airlines can do better. Complaints were up to 1.90 per 100,000 fliers last year, the worst rate since 2001, Headley said. The largest number of gripes had to do with flight issues, luggage, and reservations, ticketing, and boarding.
For "a lot of fliers, somebody's landed on their last nerve," Headley says. But complaints can also show the airlines where to improve, and if they respond well, "You can by policy and employee commitment, which trickles down from managerial commitment, change the culture and the performance outcome."
Airlines with best overall performance in 2015
1. Virgin America
2. JetBlue
3. Delta
4. Hawaiian
5. Alaska
6. Southwest
7. SkyWest
8. United
9. ExpressJet
10. American
11. Frontier
12. Envoy Air
13. Spirit
Best performing US airlines by category
On-time arrival: Hawaiian (88.4%)
Denied boardings: JetBlue (.02)
Mishandled bags: Virgin America (.84)
Customer complaints: Alaska Airlines (.50)
Worst performing U.S. airlines by category
On-time arrival: Spirit (69%)
Denied boardings: Envoy (2.35)
Mishandled bags: Envoy (8.52)
Customer complaints: Spirit (11.73)
TNS
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