USAirways Continue to Shock with Poor Service

Just returned from a trip to San Francisco on USAir. I continue to be shocked by how much this airline has just given up on the concept of service. I wrote a blog recently about one flight in which the attendants seemed to be mimicking Southwest. I thought that perhaps USAir was trying to be friendlier and more customer friendly. Sorry to say, I was mistaken. This was a one-time experience due to the individual attendant, not the airline.

On this most recent trip, my wife and I flew 1st class. We did it because we were celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary and wanted a great experience. What a waste of money!! First, the airplane on the flight out was in very bad need of refurbishing internally--seats were torn, the seat in front of us wouldn't stay up, and there was precious little leg room for a 1st class cabin. The flight attendant worked hard to make our experience as pleasurable as possible. On the way back from San Francisco, we were informed that we had two bags too many (one is allowed to check two bags per person free in 1st class). The price quoted was $200 to pay to check two bags. $200 dollars for bags--after paying more than $1500 per ticket for 1st class. Unbelievable!!

Anyone who understands airline pricing models recognizes that the airlines only make money when they fill seats. When an airplane takes off with an empty seat, it is no different than a super market that has broken eggs or spoiled milk. It is wasted inventory. As a result, the airline is willing to price seats at differentiated prices. So, there is tremendous variance amongst the passengers in terms of what each person paid. Most of the 1st class cabin is comprised of people with upgrade coupons, or they have paid about $100 at the last minute to upgrade because there was an empty 1st class seat. Few, if any in the 1st class cabin have paid full fare, as we did. Few corporations are allowing their executives to fly 1st class anymore, so the full fee passengers are few and far between.

Given this background, it was absolutely shocking that USAir wanted to charge us $200 for two extra bags after we paid full 1st class fare. It was not shocking, given how poorly this airline is run, that they would not bend their bag fee policy for full fare passengers. Our fee more than made up the cost of extra bags--the airline got its money.

In addition, this was a 5+-hour flight and there was no entertainment. We weren't even offered headsets to listen to music. Our kids just flew Air Canada across country--an airline that has gotten a lot of flack of late for poor service--and economy class had individual entertainment systems in the seat backs. Yet, USAir offers no entertainment, even in 1st class. The only other airline like that is Southwest, but that is expected and promised--one doesn't pay for bags and the airline has no first class. They make a promise and stick to it. Is USAir trying to be a no-frills airline and high priced fares? That would be an interesting play. Not wise, but interesting.

USAir is a damaged brand with little redeeming value other than a fairly decent safety record. Its planes are old, its attendants do not seem to care, its fees are high, particularly at airports where it has a commanding market share (e.g., Charlotte, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh).

Recently, USAir wanted to merge with United. Continental moved in a did the merger, knocking USAir out. The fact that United went quickly for a different suitor is good demonstration of the poor brand equity of USAir. Now, the question is who wants to merge with USAir, since the airline needs a partner. One analyst suggested JetBlue. I cannot even imagine that JetBlue would want to be tainted with the USAir brand. The only way they would consider a deal is if--a big if--they wanted the routes USAir has, and if JetBlue wanted to become a major airline.

The only way USAir is surviving is because it provides a needed service that right now cannot be duplicated--flying to cities from certain cities that no other airline serves. As other airlines, like Southwest, move in to challenge USAir, they take market share and further damage USAir. Instead of beefing itself up and improving its brand, USAir acts like a company run by accountants or hedge fund managers--cutting costs and with it further eroding perceived value.

Stick a fork in USAir already. The airline is cooked. Please someone put it out of its misery.