13 U.S. Airlines Got the Most Complaints in 2022:
Whether we’re talking about flight delays, trouble getting refunds, sudden cancellations, and even ballooning airfare, all of these are pushing customers to file complaints with the airline company they decided to fly.
Well, based on data from the 2022 Air Travel Consumer Report, we’ve managed to make a list of airlines ranked by those which got the most customer complaints. In March last year, there were a total amount of 2,414 complaints to the airlines in this report, for a full amount of 3.42 complaints per 100,000 passengers who boarded planes.
Compared to the same month two years ago, the complaints drastically increased from 2.41 per 100,000 to 3.42. So if you want to find out which U.S. airlines got on the list, click next:
Skywest Airlines
Utah-based regional airline Skywest is contracted to take care of the flights of larger airlines, such as United Airlines, American Airlines, and Delta Air Lines, but also Alaska Airlines, The company operates a fleet of over 600 planes, and flees most routes on behalf of United and Delta.
However, it seems that in nowadays difficult labor environment, many regional airlines such as Skywest have to deal with more routes cut by the bigger airlines they have been contracted by, in favor of other companies that are more profitable.
Horizon Airlines
Horizon Airlines, which is headquartered in Washington, is the sister company of Alaska Airlines. The company is currently in the middle of transitioning its fleet to Embraer jets, which is allegedly about to improve its operations, but also its fuel efficiency.
In conjunction with its other airline, Alaska, Horizon currently flies to no less than 120 destinations in America, Canada, the Caribbean, Costa Rica, and Mexico. The regional airline suffered a $10 million loss only in the first quarter of 2022.
Endeavor Air
The well-known Minessota-based company Endeavor is a subsidiary of Delta Air Lines. The regional carrier had become increasingly known among airline companies as one of the best-paying airlines for beginner pilots, up until last year, when pilots at Piedmont Air but also Envoy Airlines secured enormous pay raises.
Pilots’ push for bigger wages came as an outcome of the airline’s struggles to hire and retain good pilots, which affected many flight operations, but also the number of routes airlines could offer to their customers.
Mesa Airlines
Mesa Air Group, a Phoenix-based company, is a regional carrier that operates flights for American Airlines, and also United Airlines. Regional carriers such as Mesa are currently dealing with their pilots being poached by bigger airlines, because of various labor shortages, and operational issues, as airlines and analysts have stated.
Mesa’s current CEO recently declared to Congress that its labor woes are “the biggest threat to the industry” that he has ever witnessed since 9/11. Now, there are around 3,600 Mesa employees, and the company’s representatives declared that it needs to hire hundreds of other pilots.
Southwest Airlines
Like other big carriers, Dallas-based Southwest faced many labor troubles that have completely hampered its summer flying schedule in 2022. The airline was forced to cut 20,000 flights to accommodate fewer pilots, mechanics, but also other workers that were highly critical to its operations.
Southwest’s pilots and customer care workers were forced to spend last year’s May in a tense atmosphere, with many contract renegotiations with employees occurring. As of September 1, 2022, the airline fully closed its physical customer care and reservations centers.
Delta Air Lines
Delta Air Lines had to slash the number of booked flights last summer, to avoid all the last-minute cancellations that might have angered travelers. At the end of May, the airline declared that it would cut around 100 flights a day from July through August.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian even suggested the U.S. Department of Justice make a non-fly list for all the unruly passengers. As flying hasn’t been exactly the most comfortable experience for many passengers since the pandemic breakthrough, airline customers have become more and more ill-tempered.
There are also many reports and viral videos that show how passengers are spitting on or assaulting attendants, which sometimes even forces pilots to prematurely land their planes.
PSA Airlines
PSA Airlines is one of the three regional subsidiaries that are owned by American Airlines. The regional carrier flies to certain destinations in the eastern and midwestern U.S., which oftentimes includes destinations like Philadelphia National Airport, Charlotte Douglas International Airport, but also Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
In the first three months of last year, PSA marked an above-average flight cancellation rate, but also an average that is below the industry’s average on-time arrival late, which gathered a ton of customer complaints.
Alaska Airlines
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines has become the fifth-largest airline in the United States, as it has more than 200 jets in its operating fleet. The pilot shortage started hitting Alaska’s business very hard back in April, as The Seattle Times reported.
Before the skyrocketing gas prices and additional labor issues, Alaska hoped to return to its pre-pandemic flying volumes. The company declared last March that it aims to hire another 700 employees to assist with all operations in the busiest travel months.
Republic Airways
Republic Airways, the regional airline that’s headquartered in Indiana, operates a fleet of over 200 jets on behalf of American Airlines, United Airlines, but also Delta Air Lines. Republic asked the Federal Aviation Administration to cut the required training hours for pilots, to address all the industry-related labor shortages.
Envoy Air
This Texas-based airline is one of the subsidiaries of American Airlines, which operates mainly from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, alongside its parent company. Envoy has had fewer jets last year because there weren’t enough pilots to fly them.
When American Airlines grounded the flights because of operational issues, it also tends to ground jets under its regional carriers, such as Envoy and Piedmont Airlines.
Hawaiian Airlines
Hawaiian Airlines is the biggest operator of flights to and from the Hawaiian islands. The airline sought to hire 600 employees in all departments of the company because labor shortages threaten to mess with their business.
Unfortunately, the company still registers revenues below its pre-pandemic levels, and it was forced to take a $120 million loss in the first three months of last year, as its most recent filing has shown.
American Airlines
Fort Worth-based American Airlines currently flies around 350 destinations in over 50 countries. The gigantic airline registered revenues that climbed above pre-pandemic levels for the first time in March last year, according to executives.
The airline had a hard time keeping up with exploding demand for travel in 2022, as it grounded a minimum of 100 of its smaller regional jets, and ramped up all hiring efforts. American is currently hiring pilots away from its regional carriers, such as Envoy and Piedmont, to make up for its significant staffing deficit.
Almost 13,500 pilots and flight attendants decided on voluntary leave or early retirement packages throughout the pandemic, as reports by The Dallas Morning News showed.
United Airlines
Illinois-based United Airlines is the 3rd biggest airline in the United States. However, it took a $1.4 billion loss in the first three months of last year, because of the Omicron variant of Covid-19, which kept travel demands very low.
The airline recently decided upon a bag check “shortcut” at its terminals, which is meant to allow passengers to check a bag in less than a minute. And as a response to the pilot shortage, United decided to spend $100 million to expand its pilots’ training center.
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