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Flight Delays, Mishandled Bags, Consumer Complaints, Bumping Decrease, According
to Latest DOT Report
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Contact |
DOT 101-02
Bill Mosley
202-366-5571 |
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Monday, November 4, 2002 -- Flight delays, cancellations and reports of mishandled baggage for the nation’s
largest airlines decreased in September, and passengers filed fewer complaints
about airline service during the same month, according to the monthly Air Travel
Consumer Report issued today by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
During September, the reporting carriers recorded their lowest
rate of mishandled baggage since this data was first reported in September 1987,
and posted their best on-time performance since the department began collecting
comparable data in 1995.
The report also shows that the largest U.S. airlines continued
to reduce their rates of involuntary denied boarding, or bumping, during the third
quarter of this year.
Flight Delays
According to information filed with the department’s Bureau of
Transportation Statistics (BTS), the 10 largest U.S. carriers currently required
to report on-time performance posted an 88.0 percent on-time arrival record in
September, better than both August’s 82.6 percent and September 2001’s 81.5 percent
and the best mark since the department began collecting comparable data in 1995.
US Airways had the best on-time arrival rate in September at 90.9 percent, followed
by United Airlines at 89.8 and American Airlines at 89.7. America West Airlines
had the lowest percentage of on-time flights in September at 83.9, with Alaska
Airlines ranked ninth at 85.1 and American Eagle Airlines eighth at 85.6.
The monthly report normally contains a list of regularly scheduled
flights that were late at least 80 percent of the time. During September 2002,
however, no flights were this frequently late and, as a result, the list is blank.
The only previous report in which this table contained no flights was that for
September 2001 for which, since the report contained on-time data only for Sept.
1-10, there were insufficient operations to generate this table. Similarly, the
reporting carriers had no flights during September that were late 70 percent of
the time or more.
The report contains a note reminding consumers that flight delays
can be caused by a variety of factors. The data on which this report is based
do not identify the causes, only the occurrence, of flight delays.
These official on-time data are distinct from the data compiled
by DOT’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which records delays while aircraft
are under control of the air traffic control system (i.e., from actual gate pushback
time to actual gate arrival time). FAA data cover delays caused by weather and
aircraft volume, for example, but do not cover delays at the gate such as those
caused by aircraft mechanical problems, crew unavailability or many weather conditions
affecting flights before they depart. The FAA data are useful for managing the
air traffic control system but are not designed to measure airline passenger delays.
Flight Cancellations
The consumer report also includes BTS data on the number of domestic
flights canceled by the reporting carriers. In September, the carriers canceled
0.9 percent of their scheduled domestic flights, fewer than both August’s 1.1
percent and September 2001’s 2.1 percent. Alaska had the highest rate of canceled
flights in September at 1.7 percent, followed by American Eagle at 1.4 and America
West at 1.2. Continental Airlines had the lowest percentage of cancellations at
0.3 percent, followed by United, also at 0.3 but a small fraction of a percent
behind Continental, and American Airlines at 0.6.
Mishandled Baggage
In September, the 10 U.S. airlines required to file flight delay
and mishandled baggage data posted a mishandled baggage rate of 3.04 reports per
1,000 passengers, better than both August’s rate of 3.72 and September 2001’s
3.98. September’s rate was the best mark since reporting began, topping the previous
record of 3.32 set in May 2002. For the first nine months of the year, the carriers
compiled a mishandled baggage rate of 3.87, compared to their 4.66 rate for January-September
2001.
Complaints About Airline Service
The department received 514 complaints about airline service in
September, a 30 percent decrease from the 735 complaints received in August and
50.6 percent fewer than the 1,040 complaints received in September 2001. For the
first nine months of this year, the consumers filed 7,912 complaints with the
department, 45.9 percent fewer than the 14,614 filed during January-September
2001.
Complaints About Treatment of Disabled Passengers
The report also contains a tabulation of complaints filed with
DOT in September against specific airlines regarding the treatment of passengers
with disabilities. The department received a total of 29 disability-related complaints
in September, 32.6 percent fewer than the 43 filed in August and 12.1 percent
fewer than September 2001’s total of 33. For the first nine months of this year,
the department received 367 disability-related complaints, 18.4 percent fewer
than the total of 450 filed during January-September 2001.
Complaints About Discrimination
Consumers registered 12 complaints in September alleging discrimination
by airlines due to factors other than disability – such as race, religion, national
origin or sex – slightly fewer than both the 13 complaints filed in August and
the 14 filed in September 2001. For the first nine months of this year, the department
received 177 discrimination complaints against airlines, a 52.6 percent increase
over the 116 received during January-September 2001.
Bumping
The 10 largest U.S. airlines posted a bumping rate of 0.50
involuntary denied boardings per 10,000 passengers during the third quarter of
this year, down from both the rate of 0.65 for the second quarter and the 0.66
for the third quarter of 2001. For the first nine months of this year, the carriers
posted a bumping rate of 0.64, down from the 0.77 rate for January-September 2001.
Consumers may file their complaints in writing with the Aviation
Consumer Protection Division, U.S. Department of Transportation, C-75, 400 7th
St., S.W., Room 4107, Washington, D.C. 20590, by e-mail at airconsumer@ost.dot.gov,
by voice mail at (202) 366-2220 or by TTY at (202) 366-0511.
The department reminded consumers who want on-time performance
data for specific flights to call their airline ticket offices or their travel
agents. This information is available on the computerized reservation systems
used by these agents. Detailed flight delay information is also available on the
BTS site on the World Wide Web at http://www.bts.gov/ntda/oai/.
The Air Travel Consumer Report can be found on DOT’s World Wide Web site at
http://airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/
and is available in "pdf" and Microsoft Word format.
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