Three leading newspapers demand federal intervention for air travelers

Three leading newspapers last week ran editorials blasting the airline industry for its treatment of passengers and urging Congress and the Transportation Department to step in. All three cited the industry’s dismal on-time performance this year and the often-publicized incidents of passengers being stuck on board planes during long ground holds without adequate food, water or sanitary facilities, and no chance to get off. The New York Times said Transportation Secretary Mary Peters should immediately convene a scheduling meeting among airlines serving New York-area airports to reduce congested schedules. It said Ms. Peters should also push for a passenger bill of rights “to protect passenger from the worst indignities of airline congestion, including what amounts to incarceration on the runway…It’s time for Washington t get on board and put passengers’ needs first,” the Times said. The Washington Post’s editorial said that “air travel has been horrendous this year,” and it suggested that a DOT proposal to increase compensation to bumped passengers is “a nice gimme to the aggrieved, but the airlines need to do more.” It urged Congress to adopt a passenger bill of rights setting standards of treatment for travelers stuck on the tarmac. “The airlines may chafe at federal intervention, but their record of treating paying customers like cattle – with no remorse – left Washington little choice,” the Post said. The Philadelphia Inquirer’s editorial also urged Congress to act. “Lawmakers should require airlines to establish a maximum limit for delays on the tarmac and require the U.S. Transportation Secretary to enforce those limits. Three hours seems like a reasonable compromise,” the newspaper said. While regulation “may end up costing travelers more in ticket prices, the current system is only getting worse, not better,” it added.