In December, on-time performance was the highest it's been in 17 years. NBC's Brian Williams reports.
By Rob Lovitt, msnbc.com contributor
When it comes to air travel, 2011 wasn?t the best of times, but it wasn?t the worst of times.
On Tuesday, the Department of Transportation (DOT) released its latest Air Travel Consumer Report (PDF), which includes airline-performance data for both December and the entire year.
Figures for the former showed significant improvement over December 2010 while those for 2011 suggest the industry has leveled out its performance, with fewer drastic improvements or declines in service.
Thanks, in part, to this winter?s mild weather, the nation?s 16 largest airlines operated 84.4 percent of their December flights on time, a record for the month in the 17 years during which the DOT has collected such data. In December 2010, carriers arrived on time just 72 percent of the time.
Cancellations during the month also dropped from December 2010 (from 3.7 percent to 0.8 percent), as did reports of mishandled bags (from 4.72 reports per 1,000 passengers to 3.37 reports), and there were no extended tarmac delays for either domestic or international flights. Passengers apparently took notice: complaints were down from 756 in December 2010 to 710 in December 2011.
Over the course of the year, the industry?s performance was more stable than superb. On-time performance was flat ? 79.6 percent vs. 79.8 percent in 2010 ? while reports of mishandled bags dropped from 3.51 to 3.39 reports per 1,000 passengers.
Incremental changes aside, however, travelers remain unimpressed with their flying experience. Last year, they filed 11,545 complaints with DOT over flight problems, mishandled bags and other issues compared to 10,988 in 2010, an increase of 5 percent. (Both figures include complaints against U.S. and international airlines, tour operators and travel agents but not complaints filed with the travel providers themselves.)
Little wonder, then, that the industry continues to fare poorly in the public eye. ?There was a bit of a falling-off in customer satisfaction from the previous year,? said David VanAmburg, managing director of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), which has tracked the airline industry since 1994. ?On a scale of 100, they dropped from a 66 to a 65.?
The problem, at least in part, is one of perception. ?You can say that the quality of the experience has been declining in the sense that what we used to get (for example, complimentary meals, free checked bags), we don?t get any more yet we?re not paying any less,? said VanAmburg.
?If the airlines were charging us more and offering more perks ? or taking away perks but giving us a break on the price ? then we might see different numbers,? he told msnbc.com.
In fact, consumers? unhappiness over fares and fees is so strong, it?s negating their positive impressions of airline service, said Jessica McGregor, global account manager at J.D. Power and Associates.
McGregor said customer rating of overall airline services such as boarding, reservations and check-in had actually improved last year. ?Cost and fees was the only area to show a decline from 2010 to 2011,? she said. ?People are feeling nickel and dimed.?
In terms of customer satisfaction going forward, said McGregor, ?Things are looking pretty stable from last year but satisfaction over costs and fees continues to trend downward.?
Barring a long-term improvement in on-time performance, a significant drop in mishandled bag rates or the surprise elimination of those much-hated fees, the relationship between airlines and passengers will likely follow a similar path.
Rob Lovitt is a longtime travel writer who still believes the journey is as important as the destination. Follow him at Twitter.
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