Airline complaints spiked 70 percent in April, led by Spirit
WASHINGTON — April may have been the cruelest month for airline travelers.
Canceled and delayed flights jumped in April at the country's biggest airlines. That also caused a 70 percent spike in consumer complaints, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Only a small share of the country's total travelers lodged a complaint.
The spike in complaints came in the same month in which a passenger was dragged from a full United Express flight, igniting a debate over poor customer service on U.S. airlines. Kentucky physician David Dao, who was traveling on United Airlines, was forcibly removed when the flight was oversold. A video that showed him screaming as he was pulled from his seat by officers went viral, sparking a backlash among consumers.
Discount carrier Spirit Airlines (SAVE) had the highest rate of complaints, followed by United (UAL), which took a public-relations beating from the April incident with Dr. Dao. Southwest Airlines (LUV) had the lowest complaint rate.
Canceled and delayed flights rose in April on the nation's leading airlines, and so did consumer complaints, according to figures released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The rate of canceled flights nearly doubled to 1.6 percent in April compared to the same month in 2016. Delta Air Lines accounted for nearly half the cancellations — it was crippled for days by a one-day storm in Atlanta.
About 78.5 percent of flights arrived within 14 minutes of schedule, down from the 84.5 percent on-time rate in April 2016, according to the latest figures available from the government.
Hawaiian Airlines had the best on-time rate, at 88.8 percent, while Virgin America was last at 64.6 percent.
Consumers lodged 1,909 complaints with the Transportation Department, with 1,430 filed against U.S. airlines. Most consumers complain directly to the airline, but the carriers don't have to report those figures. More than one-third of complaints dealt with canceled or delayed flights or missed connections.