2008 Airline Quality Rating Report

Airlines Improve Performance, According to Satisfaction Report

Apr 10, 2009

The AQR 2008 report shows major improvement in U.S. airlines in four key areas: on time performance, denied boarding, baggage handling and customer complaints.

Air travelers, rejoice: The Airline Quality Rating Report states that the leading U.S. airlines have improved for the first time in five years. The 19th installment of the annual national Airline Quality Rating found that all 17 airlines included in the study improving their performance in 2008, after an overall worst-ever industry score the previous year.

Airlines Show Improvement Despite Lower Passenger Rates

The report found that all the major players improved in all four major elements of the AQR: on time performance, denied boarding, baggage handling, and complaints from customers.

While this might sound like positive news, there is another side to the data. Fewer passengers were flying in 2008; those who did had fewer flights to choose from, thereby decreasing the potential for complaints to be filed. What's more, many carriers instituted fees for checked luggage, resulting in many passengers carrying their belongings onto the airplane and reducing the number of checked bags. In fact, of the 15 elements researchers use to judge service quality, baggage handling fared the best, with a 25 percent increase over the previous year's findings.

"Baggage handling probably needed to improve given the fact that people are now paying for it," said Dean Headley, a researcher for the study and an associate professor of Marketing at the Wichita State University W. Frank Barton School of Business. "The airlines would have had a real problem had they lost the same number of bags and charged people for the privilege. It would have been a disaster and likely would have resulted in an increase in customer complaints."

"We know the system performs better when it's less stressed by high passenger volume," Headley continued. "The economy scared away both business and leisure travelers in 2008."

"We saw this happen after 9/11, so the ratings didn't come as a real surprise," said Brent Bowen, chairman of the aviation science department at the Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology at Saint Louis University and another study co-author. "It's clear from the rankings that now is the time to invest in new infrastructure and upgrade technology."

2008 U.S. Airline Rankings

About the Airline Quality Rating Report

The Airline Quality Rating is a joint research project funded as part of faculty research activities at Saint Louis University and Wichita State University.

The copyright of the article 2008 Airline Quality Rating Report in Business Air Travel is owned by Teresa Shaw. Permission to republish 2008 Airline Quality Rating Report in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.