Zagat Is Right. Southwest Is All We Look For In an Airline Now
OK, boys and girls, it's time for oxymoron 101:
Airline food
Customer service
Ontime performance
You get the drill. And yet, as bad as air travel can seem sometimes (and it IS bad sometimes) there are some airlines that continue to win our loyalty, our trust, and our goodwill.
In almost all cases, they do it by underpromising and overdelivering. They don't have fancy slogans they can't support in the real-world scenarios of service. They actually practice common sense, and in many cases, they empower their own employes with the freedom and the encouragement not to follow arbitrary rules but to be fair -- and every once in a while, to embrace the notion that the customer is always right.
Proof of this happened this week when the new Zagat survey of airlines and airports was released.
Not surprisingly, Southwest Airlines swept several satisfaction categories, including best value among domestic airlines for the third year in a row.
Wonder why, or how this happened? It's really easy. I know this from my own experience flying the airline: I know going in that I might be stuck in a center seat next to two Sumo wrestlers. I know I'm not on the plane for the wine list or the inflight entertainment.
I also know the price is right, I won't get gouged for checked baggage and I have a reasonable expectation of arriving on time. And that's what got Southwest recognized in Zagat -- for best luggage policy, best check-in experience, best consumer on-time estimates, and most eco-friendly -- the most top finishes of any airline.
The survey, conducted on Zagat.com, includes 8,000 opinions from frequent fliers and travel professionals, flying an average of 17 times per year. It covers 16 domestic airlines and 74 international airlines, as well as 30 airports within the United States.
Continental Airlines and JetBlue Airways topped the survey for premium seating and economy seating, respectively. This is Continental's third year winning the premium seating category among large domestic airlines.
There were few surprises on foreign airlines. Singapore Airlines was the top-rated international airline for both premium seating and economy seating, receiving a survey-high score of 28 out of 30 for its premium seats.
As for airports, Portland International topped the Overall Quality ratings with 22.47 out of 30, while New York's LaGuardia stayed at the bottom with 6.18 out of 30.
This is LaGuardia's fourth year as America's least favorite airport. And that's not surprising to me. LaGuardia has too many planes trying to fly at the same time, and no one is putting a stop to the lunacy.
There's not an airport runway in the world that can handle more than 22 take offs in any given hour, and that's in the best weather. But somehow, the airlines have been allowed to schedule as many as 34 take offs per runway. Ludicrous. And when LaGuardia slows down, those delays move west and south very quickly to many other airports.
Then there are MY most and least favorite airports. Miami has been trying (with a new Skytrain) but it still has a long way to go. I love Austin, Colorado Springs, and you have to give a shout-out to Indianapolis as well. And let's not forget Milwaukee, Chicago's secret airport.
Some other interesting findings from the survey: Forty-five percent of people try to avoid flying airlines that charge for checked luggage. That's a figure I question as being overly high, since the only airline that has a policy of NOT charging for checked bags is Southwest.
As for my own personal airline ratings,the winners might surprise you because it's all about avoiding unrealistic expectations and over-valuing the inflight experience.
Answer this question and you'll know where I stand: Why do we really fly? To get from point A to point B AND NOT DIE.
I'm not on the plane for the rich Corinthian leather or the Broadway show tunes the flight attendants will NOT be performing on board. I'm certainly not onboard for the food or the seating. Like most business travelers, I'm there because I need to get somewhere -- quickly, with as little stress as possible -- and safely.
So in my book there are no terrible or horrible flights. As long as I land safely, both I and the airline have won. How can I complain? I'm alive! Anything else is simply an unexpected bonus.
