Delta, following the lead of its competitors, has announced plans to rollout wireless broadband internet access on all its domestic mainline fleet by mid-2009.
"Delta is joining with Aircell®, a 17-year leader in airborne communications for business and commercial aviation, to install the company’s Mobile Broadband Network on the carrier’s domestic fleet. The system, Gogo™, will enable Delta customers traveling with Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as laptops, smartphones and PDAs, to access the Internet, corporate VPNs, corporate and personal e-mail accounts, as well as SMS texting and instant messaging services. Gogo will be available to customers for a flat fee of $9.95 on flights of three hours or less, and $12.95 on flights of more than three hours.
“Delta remains committed to providing a travel experience that maximizes the time our customers spend with us onboard by offering them even more productivity options,” said Richard Anderson, Delta’s chief executive officer. ”Our customers asked for in-flight connectivity, and we’re responding by rolling out the most extensive Wi-Fi network in the sky. Beginning this fall, our passengers will have the ability to stay connected when they travel with us throughout the continental U.S.”Gogo will be offered initially on Delta’s fleet of 133 MD88/90 aircraft and will rapidly expand to the remaining domestic fleet of more than 200 Boeing 737, 757 and 767-300 aircraft throughout the first half of 2009. The airline expects to have more than 330 aircraft complete by summer 2009. The full fleet agreement between Aircell and Delta will provide a consistent, convenient experience for customers traveling on the airline who wish to use the Gogo Internet service."
Here is the original article from Delta’s News Room. By the way, American has already started this service on their 767-200 fleet; here is a review of the service by WSJ reporter Walt Mossberg.
A recently released Senate report estimates that flight delays in 2007 cost passengers, airlines and the broader US economy more than $40 Billion. Take a moment to absorb that figure. $40 Billion from lost productivity, added operational costs to support delays, increased jet fuel consumption, and impact to other industries.
Here are a few key findings from the Senate’s Joint Economic Committee Report
- The total cost of domestic air traffic delays to the U.S. economy was as much as $41 billion for 2007 including higher airline operating costs, lost passenger productivity and time, and losses to other industries.
- Delayed flights consumed about 740 million additional gallons of jet fuel totaling $1.6 billion extra in fuel bills.
- Passengers were delayed by a total of 320 million hours, when accounting for padding in airline schedules. Almost 20 percent of total domestic flight time in 2007 was wasted in delay.
- Flight delays were longest during summer vacation months. Flight delays during the months of June, July and August averaged approximately 414,000 total hours of delay per month. Flights during December – the height of holiday traveling – totaled almost 438,000 hours of delay.
- 78% of flight delays in 2007 occurred before take-off, with 58 percent at the gate, and 20 percent during the taxi to the runway.
- 94 percent of all flight delays were caused by other flights arriving late, national system delays, or air carrier delays (less than six percent of delays were due to security or extreme weather)
The three largest airports in the New York City area, JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark airports had a total of over 40 million passengers last year. The New York City area airports combine for more than 27 million hours of passenger delays.And the average per-passenger delay at these three airports is nearly 28 minutes – among the highest in the nation.
The full report and the technical appendix can be found here
In advance of your next trip, keep an eye on whether your connection takes you through any of ’America’s Most Time-Draining Airports’. Maybe you’ll seek a new route to your destination
Can you imagine what you’d do with that extra 20% of time spent currently in airport delays?
The Travel Industry Association commissioned a recent study on the state of the travel industry. Roger Dow, president and CEO of the Washington, D.C.-based association, said the research "should be a wake-up call to America’s policy leaders that the time for meaningful air system reform is now." "The air travel crisis has hit a tipping point – more than 100,000 travelers each day are voting with their wallets by choosing to avoid trips," Dow said in a statement.
From this study, we gleaned some very interesting nuggets worth sharing
- Nearly half of American air travelers would fly more if it were easier, and more than one-fourth said they skipped at least one air trip in the past 12 months because of the hassles involved.
- The 41 million forgone trips cost the travel industry $18.1 billion – including $9.4 billion to airlines and $5.6 billion to hotels.
- The lost tax revenue to federal, state and local authorities equals $4.2 billion in the past 12 months.
- When 28% of air travelers avoided an average of 1.3 trips each, that resulted in 29 million leisure trips and 12 million business trips not being taken
- 44% of the air travelers surveyed said they would take more air trips each year if airport hassles could be reduced or eliminated
- People who flew more than five times in the past 12 months were more likely to describe air travel as frustrating, at 52 percent, compared with 33 percent of infrequent travelers, defined as people who flew one or two round trips in 12 months, according to the survey.
- More than half of respondents said either efficiency or reliability is getting worse, 60 percent said the system is deteriorating, and 56 percent said flying is the "bad" or "worst" part of travel – though 62 percent said air travel security is improving
I’m surprised that only half of flyers find air travel frustrating. When was the last time you ran into someone who enjoyed their flight?
In other words, they are reducing costs at your expense.
What This Means to You:
- Less planes
- Less airline staff
- First checked bag fee $15
- In-flight beverage "purchase" program
- No more bonus miles with Preferred status
“US Airways is also eliminating its bonus miles program for Preferred status Dividend Miles members. Preferred members currently receive mileage bonuses based on their status level. The Preferred bonus program will be discontinued for tickets purchased on/after Aug. 6, 2008.”
- Increased fees for booked at airport or through call centers
- "Redemption Processing Fee" for using Dividend Miles
I hate being the bearer of bad news.
This is just another sign, airlines are moving towards an "a la carte" menu to extract additional dollars from their customers.
In business school, this approach involves extracting additional customer surplus to maximize company profits. By further segmenting the flying population, the airlines can extract additional surplus which it was giving away on a first come, first serve basis. With oil prices at a record high, airplanes are competing to stay in business, not steal away customers from other airlines. By cutting down on flight schedules, seat capacity is now in short supply so there is no concern about flying empty airplanes. In a market with limited competition, the customer will pay the price.
Just when you thought it was over…
Here’s a few choice quotes from the article:
"…the combination of reducing seating capacity within the airline’s fleet, moving toward an a la carte system of charging fliers for such things as checking bags, eating and drinking, along with expense reductions, will save the Tempe, Ariz.-based carrier $500 million annually."
"In addition to charges for baggage and refreshments, US Airways has raised the $15 charge to book flights through its call center to $25 for domestic flights and $35 for international flights. The $20 service fee to buy a ticket at an airport or city ticketing office increases to $35 for domestic travel and $45 for international travel."
"Most airlines except Southwest have announced capacity and personnel reductions, and a la carte charges."
"Fare-paying now looks like the customer is just paying the base price for the flight…You want doors – that’s going to cost you more."
"Right now, you’re dealing with a panicked industry which, after fuel costs, is making about 30 bucks a seat…If they can get an extra $10 out of a passenger, that’s a 33 percent increase. The industry already has sold most of its product for July and August below cost."
Don’t hold your breath - you can expect the other airlines to follow shortly.