"The air travel crisis has hit a tipping point"
Fed-up air travelers avoided 41 million trips in last year, says survey
U.S. air travelers are deeply frustrated and avoiding flying, says a new survey by the Travel Industry Association. They're so fed up that they avoided an estimated 41 million trips over the last year, estimated the TIA, costing the U.S. economy billions of dollars.
"The air travel crisis has hit a tipping point," said Roger Dow, the TIA's president and CEO.
"With rising fuel prices already weighing heavily on American pocketbooks, we need to find ways to encourage Americans to continue their business and leisure travel. Unfortunately, just the opposite appears to be happening," Dow said in a statement issued Thursday.
The 41 million avoided trips during the last 12 months rippled outward across the entire travel/tourism industry, said the TIA, estimating it cost the airlines more than $9 billion in lost revenue; hotels nearly $6 billion; and restaurants more than $3 billion. Among the survey's findings:
• Travelers' top concerns are delays, cancellations and inefficient security screening.
• More than 60 percent of travelers believe the air travel system is deteriorating.
• One-third of all air travelers are dissatisfied with the air travel system, with 48 percent of all frequent air travelers (5 or more trips per year) dissatisfied.
The survey of 1,003 air travelers (adults who had taken at least one round-trip by air in the last 12 months) was conducted between May 6 and May 13 by the polling firms of Peter D. Hart Research Associates and The Winston Group.
Get more information on the survey at www.tia.org
seattletimes.nwsource.com
Comments
Travelers avoided 41 million trips? I thought it would be more. I used to fly regularly, but my last flight was in 2004, a trip to Hawaii, where driving was not an option. Who needed the hassle? You need to get to the airport a lot earlier, wait in line to be searched. Then the airline nickel and dime you and treat you like a homeless person. Who needs that. Well, I didn't save a lot of money on my car insurance, no thanks to Geico, but I did save a lot of money on travel by not going anywhere.
So what? This release sounds more like a warm-up for another bail-out. Let the weak in the industry perish and the strong companies survive. Where is it written that we MUST travel (unless you're in business) and support airlines or any other industry. Economics and business models must change as society changes. Maintaining or expecting a status quo is the thing dreams are made of.
Why is this only a surprise occurrence to CEOs and reporters? Why is no one mentioning the rising price of fuel here? I'll put up with some airline hassles if I can save a few bucks - but that's not happening out there right now. I bet you'll find that the same folks like me who are flying less are also driving less, too. While this is not good news for the airline and tourism industry, who's to say that using less fuel is so bad?
Having switched careers in 2007, I must say that I have not flown one time! The hassles of security, the sky-high price of tickets, and the unreliability of the airlines to deliver on-time service, makes me wonder why anyone bothers unless its ABSOLUTELY necessary to fly. But voluntarily put yourself and your family through the uncertainty of having your trip ruined by the crappy flight system in this country? Unbelievable. Particularly since I left a legacy carrier as a flight attendant when I "switched" careers. All of this drama seemed invisible to me, especially since I was allowed around the security lines, flying was free, and I could hop on any flight any time that had an opening. Wow...it's tough being a civilian!
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