Air Passengers’ Needs Come First

Christina Wade finally lost it. She started screaming: “I’ve had enough of this! I’m going to open the door!” Wade and 190 other airline passengers had been stuck on a runway in Detroit for hours. There was no clean water, little food and the restrooms were overrun with human waste. The babies on board ran out of diapers, formula, patience.

Finally, Wade snapped. Flight attendants guarded the exits, offered Valium and Wade calmed down only after a plea from a parent that his baby would freeze if she opened the door.

Northwest Flight 1829 is now infamous. The Wall Street Journal, in an April 28 article, chronicled in riveting detail the desperation of the Jan. 2, 1999, flight. The story reads like a mystery and at the end, as the passengers finally leave the plane, you’ll feel relief, as if you’ve been trapped inside with them.

The tale of Flight 1829 is compelling because all air travelers have lived a shorter version of it. Endured a flight delayed for hours or canceled altogether. Suffered through an interminable wait on a runway with either steaming or freezing temperatures in the airplane. Lived through a flight short on food, leg room, friendly attendants and clean bathrooms.

Finally, passengers are organizing and fighting back. Several have filed lawsuits. And passengers are less reluctant to file complaints when things go wrong; passenger complaints rose more than 25 percent in 1998, according to the Department of Transportation.

Enough disgruntled passengers have complained to their elected officials that legislation is now being considered. According to a Knight-Ridder story that ran in this newspaper’s business section Thursday, at least eight airline improvement bills are pending in Congress.

One bill, co-sponsored in the Senate by a Democrat and Republican, would make airlines explain why flights are delayed or canceled, make refunds easier to get and allow consumers better access to all fares.

Some new legislation might help, but passengers also need to realize that we’ve entered a new era of airplane transportation. Flights will get more crowded, as will airports. Passengers must learn to live with the new carry-on rules. Some airlines now limit passengers to one bag; others are strict about the size. The days of hauling two overstuffed suitcases and a computer on board are gone, as they should be. Fewer carry-ons mean more legroom, and shorter delays.

Passengers should be sure to compliment the airlines when they do things right. Ticket agents often act as guardian angels, rescheduling flights, bending no-refund rules, picking a prime seat for a weary passenger. Flight attendants can make a flight from hell better by extra gestures of concern. Just as you should write letters when things go terribly wrong, letters also should go out when a flight seems seamless.

Airlines, though, must wake up to the reality that passengers more and more will use their money to make real changes. The lowest fare simply won’t make it for some consumers anymore. Rather, they’ll book a flight based on their personal history with the airline. And if you’ve spent six hours and 57 minutes on a runway in a stinky airplane with over-the-edge passengers, you probably won’t fly that airline again, even if it gives tickets away.