Here’s surprising good news amid recent negative headlines about U.S. airlines: customer satisfaction was actually increasing — at least in 2016.
The 2017 J.D. Power North America Airline Satisfaction Study reported an overall industry score of 756 out of 1,000, a 30-point rise from 2015. Despite the improvement, airlines still trail other service sectors such as hotels and car rental firms.
The stronger performance in 2016 is attributed to lower fares, better on-time reliability, fewer lost bags and fewer incidents of passengers being involuntarily removed from flights. This marked the fifth consecutive year of gains in passenger satisfaction.
“It’s impossible to think about airline customer satisfaction without recalling recent images of a passenger being dragged from a seat, but our data shows that, overall, the airline industry has made notable improvements in customer satisfaction across a range of measures, from ticket cost to flight crew,” said Michael Taylor, travel practice lead at J.D. Power. “As recent events remind us, however, airlines still have significant room for improvement.”
Among legacy carriers, Alaska Airlines earned the highest satisfaction score, while Southwest led the low-cost carriers.
The study also found that when travelers encounter problems, they are increasingly likely to express their frustration on social media rather than through traditional complaint channels.