8 Comments »

1. Rick, I’m disapppointed that you decided to promote an apples to oranges comparison. It’s not a fair fight - domestic flights vs. international ones are completely different.

   That said, I’m pretty sure the end result would not have been any different otherwise. But taking a short-haul Cathay flight, or a UA flight across the pacific, would have made a difference in the validity of the comparison. I’m sorry, the comparison on having to buy vs. free meals on domestic vs. international flights isn’t right. Any US-based airline also would have given free food and headsets on international flights.

   I would truly be interested in hearing the author’s opinion about why the international airline does much better in with a comparison based on a more equal footing.

   Comment by Elliot Campbell — June 2, 2008 @ 8:46 pm

2. I was more interested in the story as a microcosm of the customer satisfaction woes we have in the U.S. and what a typical customer expects and gets

   Comment by Rick Seaney — June 2, 2008 @ 10:43 pm

3. I’d still take domestic over international. Really!

   I flew coast to coast (two legs) for less than 300$. Can the international offer the same for 2400 miles? For half as many miles? For their neck of the woods? Try TIA-ATH. or another less than 500 miles flight.

   I don’t mind nickel and diming: paying extra for extra bags or meals or buts. What irritates me is that pricing structure: I bought tickets GSO-DTW-MKE which are less expensive than DTW-MKE. Thanks to your site I know why.

   Annoyed for being offered lunch for 5$? She’d already paid at least 1500$ for the ticket, 5$ is .03%. The papers and the meals cost money and it’s shared by all the ticket prices. Why should we chip in so that she can read the paper and have a free meal? Not that I don’t mind getting them for free but they do cost and I have to foot that bill.

   Comment by Andy — June 3, 2008 @ 9:16 am

4. Andy got a great deal. Only $300 for a round trip coast to coast? I went to San Diego from Maryland and it cost me $450 in coach. I don’t think that even my price is going to be met too much longer. Jet Fuel is increasing in price and the airlines are charging to get bags checked! I even read a blog saying some are considering charging for restroom use? But nothing disheartened me more than this article called Silent Sprint for Aviation. Since most airlines are losing money this year our plethora or flight choices are going to be drastically cut so only the most profitable, which aren’t too profitable anymore, are the ones running.

   Comment by PaulHunt — June 3, 2008 @ 10:49 am

5. I’d agree with Rick here. Even though the international vs domestic sector comparison is not perfect, it does reflect a start reality - US based carriers just don’t have their act together. I think we should make all US airline executives travel at least once on a world class airline like Cathay, Singapore or even Vietnam Airlines in this case. Closer to home, you just need to look at how Virgin America (VX) and JetBlue are creating a pleasant experience for their customer.

   Once they have experienced it for themselves, hopefully, they’ll be able to think outside the “metal tube”. Creating a memorable flying experience is not about making money that instant (by charging $5 per snack!), but rather more about ensuring that passenger comes back again and tells the whole world about his experience.

   The current actions of most US airlines are only eroding whatever little brand value they had among customers and they seem to be going deeper into the dark times. They may soon see light at the end of the tunnel, but it will probably from an oncoming train (in the form of a competitor like VX).

   Comment by Shashank Nigam — June 3, 2008 @ 2:30 pm

6. I have taken U.S. Airlines for trips abroad as well as foreign carriers like Air China for both short “domestic” trips in China and international flights and I have to agree. In every way, Air China, China Southern, etc. are so much better than United, American, etc. There is no comparison. I will never use a domestic carrier for international travel ever again after all the disappointments they have given me while the International carriers have always surprised me with their excellence!

   Comment by Nicholas Stanosheck — June 4, 2008 @ 11:44 am

7. Having just returned from a 3 country trip to Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, (returned just 3 days ago)., and flying coach on Bangkok Airways, Vietnam Airlines, and others., no US carrier can compare.

   These Asian carriers, presumeably paying the same for fuel or more than U.S. Carriers, still offer a snack or meal on ALL flights, even short flights of slightly over 1 hour, at odd times of day will have a snack of some type. The other customer service areas remind me of the way air travel once was in the USA.

   No Asian traveler is facing fees for their first bag., no Asian traveler is treated rudely or like cattle on their way to the slaughterhouse. How do they do it?
   Do they buy their fuel on the same planet as US Carriers do? I don’t fly an airline in order to receive airline food, it’s just symbolic of the type of disconcern for travelers that US carriers have, and they wonder why they have been going bankrupt long before oil prices were as high as they are now.

   When oil was half the price it is now (not that long ago), US carriers still couldn’t make it into black ink.The public seems to accept whatever new onerous fee or new torturous system is enacted for the “priviledge” of flying a US Carrier.

   If you haven’t flown a non-US carrier lately, of course you can’t believe or imagine the difference possible.

   Comment by D. Eugene Parker — June 5, 2008 @ 9:43 am

8. I have flown on Eastern European airlines many times, Aerosvit and Ukraine International, there is no comparison with U.S. based carriers. The food and service is so much better and you are not charged extra for anything, you even still get free alchoholic beverages. So, it begs the question, why? They buy their fuel from the same suplliers.
   And, I must say, the flight attendants look great.

   Comment by Lewis Garrett — June 19, 2008 @ 11:16 am

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