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 The Airline Passenger's Bill of Rights
Lost or Delayed Luggage
Airplane Horror Stories
 Tell Us YOUR Airplane Horror Story!
 Two weeks ago we took a look at the airline industry at its level worst -- but surely things can't be like that every day? Actually, they're not. They're worse.
We wrote about the proposed Passenger Bill of Rights two weeks ago; two days later, the horrific JetBlue stranding occurred. Heaven forbid any of the bill proponents or angry pundits jinxed those folks, but whew -- it sure drove our point home.
A pair of major tarmac strandings within a couple of months may be drawing all the media attention and outrage right now, but the truth is that these incidents are just the tip of the iceberg. There are greater problems in the airline industry -- performance issues that affect travelers every single day. And while the tarmac strandings just might drum up enough attention to get a passenger bill of rights passed in Congress, the real reason we need that bill of rights is to deal with the airlines' day-to-day operational issues -- lost bags, flight delays, long lines -- which are only getting worse.
Just take a look at how the airlines did over the long haul in 2006; I am likely not spoiling the ending if I say that it's not a flattering picture.
2006 by the Numbers
We're taking our data from the Air Travel Consumer Report, a pretty fascinating document that includes best and worst performances (and most everything in between) sorted and ranked by airline, airport, flight number, time of day, arrival and departure, oversales, on-time vs. late, and more. You can take a peek for yourself at the Department of Transportation's Web site.
The latest report from February 2007, which crunches data from December 2006 as well as the preceding 12 months dating back to January 2006, includes some less than heartening stats:
- Overall on-time arrival rate for 2006: 75.4 percent, down from 77.4 percent in 2005
- Overall mishandled baggage per 1,000 passengers in 2006: 6.73 reports, up from 6.64 in 2005
- Total complaints to the DOT in 2006: 8,321, down 4.8 percent from 2005's total of 8,741.
Now let's recast these in terms we can understand.
 On-Time Performance
Flights were on time 77.4 percent of the time in 2005, 75.4 percent in 2006. If we were to grade them on these marks, the airlines dropped to a C from last year's unremarkable C+.
And let's be truthful and call it a "Gentlemen's C" at best, since the airlines already build in room for error by regularly overestimating required travel time. That's a 2.0 at university -- worse than a lot of our elected officials did while in college!
How bad does it get? Some stats from December 2006:
- Four regularly scheduled Skywest flights (all to or from Salt Lake City) arrived late 100 percent of the time
- Speaking of Skywest, eight of the 10 worst performing flights were on the SLC-based airline
- Nearly 100 regularly scheduled flights arrived late at least 80 percent of the time
- Between 2 p.m. and 10 p.m. daily, less than 70 percent of all flights departed on time
- After 4 or 5 p.m. daily, less than 70 percent of all flights arrived on time
Mishandled Baggage
If you have put in any time in a major U.S. airport, you know that by the time you get from the parking lot to your seat, you have seen literally thousands of fellow travelers. Well, for every thousand you walk past, nearly seven will be making a baggage claim at the end of their trip.
Or let's look at it another way: you probably joined 150 people or so in the security line alone -- it's almost a lock that someone you can see simply by turning your head will have a lost or mishandled bag at the end of your trip. Take a quick look around your gate area, same story. And your full flight, yep, same story. Hey, with a little luck, it could be you!
Have you ever had an airline lose your bag? I've written in this space about the traveler on Air France who was promised on a daily basis for nine days that his bags would be delivered to his hotel in Seville, Spain. Ultimately the bags arrived on his doorstep two weeks later -- back at his home in Massachusetts!
That was an extreme case; you are more likely to have your luggage arrive in a few days time, but often at a time of day at which you are less likely to make a scene -- say 2 or 3 a.m. -- when you will find it in a heap on your porch after hearing a loud bang at your front door. So if after your next trip it sounds like your house is being broken into, there's no need to get out the mace -- it's just your favorite airline!
Baggage mishandling has become so routine that many professional musicians, particularly those with delicate but somewhat bulky instruments such as high-end violins, now opt to drive long distances to engagements, or even to purchase a seat for their instrument, rather than trust the airline with their livelihood.
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