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Cutting Back Schedules Seen As Late-Flight Solution

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 4, 2007

WASHINGTON - With one in four domestic flights arriving late this year, the airline industry is hearing from passengers and the government that patience is wearing thin.
Aviation officials are considering forcing carriers to shrink their flight schedules or pay more to fly during peak travel periods, though the traveling public could end up with higher fares as a result.

'Ideally, you want a solution that maximizes value for the flying public, not a blunt tool' such as a mandate to cut a certain percentage of flights or price jumps that are then passed on to consumers, airline consultant Robert Mann said.

On Wednesday, the Transportation Department said 25.2 percent of domestic flights arrived late from January to August, the industry's worst performance since comparable data began being collected in 1995.

In August, the nation's 20 largest carriers reported an on-time arrival rate of 71.7 percent, down from 75.8 percent a year ago. At the same time, customer complaints nearly doubled to 1,634 in August compared with 864 a year earlier.

The airlines and Federal Aviation Administration blame the delays on outdated air traffic control technology, weather and more passengers.

The Associated Press

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