My exchange with Daniel Hall earlier this week made it onto The Economist‘s Free Exchange, which was in turn picked up by Megan McArdle’s Asymmetrical Information.
The Economist writer brings in the intervention dimension:
[S]o politicised an industry as air travel need not fear dislocations in any case; governments would react incredibly quickly to pull back on any part of an agreed-upon energy bill that appeared to cause significant damage to airlines or aeroplane manufacturers. This, in fact, is one of the arguments made by carbon pricing sceptics–that governments will not allow the necessary pain to be felt.
McArdle follows this with
[G]overnments will not allow anything to harm the airline industry.
What I don’t quite understand is why this is so. Why is everyone obsessed with having protected domestic airlines, and indeed, airplane manufacturing capacity? . . . Now China, too, wants its own airframe manufacturer. And everyone wants to protect their national airlines.
Why is flying so emotional? And so heavily, heavily protected by the heavy hand of the state?
Two things to say about this: amen, but things may be looking up.
Aviation remains one of the most nationalized industries on the planet. British author Simon Calder once wrote, (more…)
Surprise: travelers don’t hate air travel as much as you might think
Posted in Evan's Commentary, tagged consumer advocacy, travel, usa on December 13, 2007 |
Gallup has a new poll out today with some unexpected results: Americans on the whole are satisfied with air travel, and their positive opinions of it have actually increased since 1999.
Americans who fly (about 43 percent have flown in the past year) report being satisfied with airline staff, on-time performance, baggage handling, and even airport security, with which 69 percent of respondents were satisfied! Interestingly, satisfaction with ticket prices has gone up from 45 percent to 65 percent since 1999, an indication that fares remain at historically low levels. In some categories, frequent fliers are less satisfied, but in many they are just as satisfied as those who take less than four flights per year. The one thing passengers don’t approve by majorities is seat comfort.
According to Gallup:
These findings are profoundly contradictory to the conventional wisdom. To be sure, there’s room to improve, but that such vast majorities are satisfied indicates that the current level of fares and services meet the demand for air travel. It also suggests that passengers have already long-accepted what Elliott Hester urges on the NY Times blog Jet Lagged: “Main-cabin passengers might have less disappointing experiences if they accepted a commercial flight for what it really is: public transportation. A relatively inexpensive way to travel from point A to point B. Nothing more. Nothing less.” The data show that consumers aren’t disappointed–and that they’re growing more and more satisfied.
Like I said, surprising.
Airline Satisfaction Remains High [Gallup]
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