What Not to Do: Eight Lessons from Airports

It seems that to address all of these points, you'd have to upend several discrete hierarchies: TSA, FAA, NTSB, local law enforcement, food companies, airlines, ticketing agencies, unions (pilot, attendants, baggage handlers, etc.), airport staff, et al. Good luck! P.S. Spirit Airlines has none.

As to the "no tablets" rule... I believe it is more about crowd control or classroom management. I saw a special where they took off and landed in a p[lane full of electronics actively sending and receiving messages. I believe the air staff already have enough troubles getting the active attention of the passengers to reinforce safety messages. While you and I travel tons G, there are many who do not, and need to hear those safety messages.  All they ask is for a few minutes of undivided attention during the most dangerous times of the flight, and I give it graciously, as they really do have our safety in mind. 

Love this! I also spend way too much time in airports. I know where all the outlets in the Calgary airport are, even the one you have to climb under a billboard to get to. I have to say, I am fortuitous enough to fly mostly with WestJet here in Canada, and their employees are always helpful and happy. I will do almost anything to avoid flying in and out of YYZ, especially on an Air Canada flight... *Shudder*...

My worst ever experience at an airport was at Heathrow.

We were on holiday in Zermatt when the terror threats happened in 2006. When we flew back from Switzerland via Heathrow to get back to Edinburgh, the problems started. Utter chaos and quite a scary experience.

There were people standing around everywhere not knowing what to do and no-one seemed to be in charge. There was a man outside with a loudspeaker calling out possible flights that MIGHT be flying but in reality nothing was moving. It was a recipe for disaster 

To cut a long story short though, we ended up having to stay at Heathrow for 3 nights at our own expense and our luggage had been lost in the luggage jungle.

We also helped out a teenage girl from Romania when flights finally resumed as she was travelling alone and had no-one to help her. At that point they were drawing numbers out of a hat to see who got on a flight but we insisted that this girl be allowed to travel. I'm sure there were countless other like her though.

We couldn't take keys in the hand luggage or anything the airport authorities considered a sharp implement! So when we finally got a flight back to Scotland we couldn't get into our car when we arrived back because our keys were in the lost cases somewhere in Heathrow.

The cases finally turned up about 6 weeks later. It wasn't until then that we could get our car back from the airport. Luckily the car parking charge was waived otherwise that would have been an even more costly experience to say the least!

I vowed never to travel through Heathrow again.

airlines "can" get a bum deal sometimes I think.....  they have to put on a service that is 100% safe and pleasant for all in a standardized format - the seats all have to be the same size / the space between the seats have to be the same size, the food has to be relatively standardized.......  when their customers feel that they deserve a personalized service (more leg room for my 7' 6" uncle (#madeupfamilymembers) and wheat free bread for my health conscious aunt (#seeearlierfamilyreferecne).  All whilst trying to turn a profit when the biggest costs (Tax and Oil) are controlled by others (govt and the real world powers!)

Most other industries have more scope for flexibility and less issues with failure (the plane HAS to work!) - so when I travel, maybe my standards drop a little (we are FLYING "!!" eek - after all).

Having said all that (and no - I do not work for an airline, never have, and probably never will) - the points you make still 100% apply and there are some good airlines out there who are fun to fly with - and some disastrous ones who fill me with dread at their name...  

Sadly - Europe's flight success story - ryanair - bases its business model on deliberate poor customer service (to keep customer costs down).....  The world's current modus operani of "Pile em high and sell em cheap" - seems to work!!

I'm always shocked at how bad the experience is when I travel.  It also doesn't help to get crazy super status man who likes to let you know he's the best.

Happened to see this on CNN just now.  http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/31/technology/innovation/blackjet-uber-jets/  I've thought for a long time that this would/will happen eventually.  The industry splitting in two - small jets providing high-end service for the <5% who want it, and airborne buses the other 95%.  The small jet thing has been tried before w/o success.  Too expensive and not convenient enough.  But I think the industry will get there someday.

No Starbucks at the Ft. Lauderdale airport? I see that as a plus!

But your points are dead on. 

Oh, and the inhumanity of making smaller seats and adding rows.  Charging extra for an exit row, which is a volunteer service that should not be for sale.  Hidden fees -- like baggage fees.  You know me, I'm not one for more government, but we need a passenger bill of rights by law, not a voluntary agreement the airlines never live up to.  Maybe these have less to do with airports pe se, but it's inclusive of the overall flying experience. 

To go by air - to not go by air! Why is it I seem to be only one in the terminal to help  a fellow passenger -  someone who is less capable than myself with - her/his baggage? Is it because I'm not loaded down with electronic equipment in use and just too important to relate to my fellow passenger? Or is it because I need to get to some flat surface where I can set up my portable office so I can conduct business for the 40 minute layover? Or is it because I can afford $7.00 for a cup of what must be arguably the most horrible coffee AKA Starbucks and must elbow my way through the crowd to get it? Or is it because I'm rich and important and don't need anybody for anything except that which I demand. I ride last class because it's all I can afford - but I usually bring a book to read and try to be a friend to man.

When they create the time travel portal to beam us around, half these complaints won't matter...hopefully!

Great stuff, Gini.  The power of deciding what NOT to do is immense.  If I ever get my head actually writing a book on this, it will be called "Fire Away!"

At the risk of seeming self-serving (a risk I incur at least several times a day), here are three blog posts I wrote over the past couple of years about my airport experiences. The stories are true, I promise a few laughs, and there's some sexual humor.   If that doesn't get you to read them (Sex Sells), what will?

http://dwallace12.wordpress.com/2010/12/05/pain-in-the-ass-ism/

http://dwallace12.wordpress.com/2011/04/22/be-still-my-traveling-heart/

http://dwallace12.wordpress.com/2012/06/07/security-theater-2/

Regarding #4, the airlines have a business model problem.  In the late 90s, 10% of passengers - those in the first 15 or so rows of the plane - accounted for 40% of revenue.  By the early 2000s, both numbers had fallen by half - 5% of passengers accounted for 20% of revenue.  Those numbers haven't gone up, and have probably gone down.  The airlines would love to figure out how to break the plane into 2 pieces, but they can't.  SWA and perhaps Jet Blue, unburdened by legacy, have business models that provide a good experience for the 95%.  The rest are stuck trying to figure out how to provide differential experiences on a single set of assets.  Very difficult, which is why they now make the basic service so uncomfortable that many people will pay to avoid pain. 

In Competitive Strategy (which his students, me included, lovingly referred to as "The Old Testament"), Michael Porter described industries with low entry and high exit barriers as producing returns that are both low and volatile.  Over its entire history of ups and downs (see what I did there?), the airline industry's ROI has been. . .0%.

Lastly, I went through O'Hare last weekend and had time to try Bayless.  Not  bad, there were seats at the bar on Sat AM, and I even got an outlet!

I would add:  "This flight is over booked, would anyone like to give up their seat?"

If no one volunteers, the last person in coach to check-in gets bumped from the flight. I've yet to understand why Airlines overbook flights. It's bad business to stretch yourself thin on purpose, take a customer's money and then inform them you can't accommodate what they paid for because you sold too many tickets. And the gate attendees are never ever sympathetic, almost like it's the customer's fault.    

I actually wrote about airline/airport customer service awhile back. The biggest problem is a lack of economic incentives for improving the customer (traveller) experience. The airlines themselves are oligopolies, the airports are virtual monopolies, and the government, which is a huge participant in this experience, is a pure monopoly. 

There are a ton of ways air travel could be improved (per your list), but will that move the profit needle for most of the players? There is little to no competitive impetus to drive change.

Perhaps the players don’t have a sense of the opportunity cost. Unless it is a rush trip, I’ll usually take the car for anything that is a 7 hour drive or less. But perhaps there are not enough people that make those decisions. 

There certainly are exceptions, so it's not all gloomy. Some airlines are trying to improve, but so much of the experience is still outside their control. Overall, I just don’t see the economic incentives being in place for the system to drastically change. 

Ah, yes, the airport has been inspiration for how NOT to do things for a while now. I wrote a column in a tech newsletter back in 2003 comparing how IT's user community might view IT like the rest of us view the airport when it comes to customer service. Different procedural issues back then, but the points made by your eight bullets are the same now as it was then. 

First, I tried the Rick Bayless "restaurant" at O'Hare on a recent business trip... even blogged about it (http://t60productions.wordpress.com/2012/08/13/celebrity-chefs-airport-video/). Get a sandwich to go and take it to your gate... it's possible... and worth it!

Second, I have an airport-related video to share! :-)  If all airport personnel were like Cindy, traveling would be a much better experience.

VIDEO-- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6bUwwrVGt8&feature=share&list=PL3EBB53D6432A880E

--Tony Gnau

This is what Seth Godin wrote a few days ago. Almost exactly...

Whenever I read what other people say about airports, it just reminds me how lucky we are in Columbus. True, it's a smaller airport, but... You're basically tripping over all of the outlets, free WiFi, local eateries have a place in there right along with the big boys, people are nice and, for the most part, security is a breeze. A lot of what they do helps me out my anti-flying boyfriend at ease (although, I admittedly try to keep him at home for the sake of our relationship ;)). And I LOVE flying Southwest through Newark. The security is the nicest I've met and one of the gate agents is hilarious. When I flew on a pretty empty plane, he asked us to all take a window seat and wave to the other planes. Luckily, these are the two airports I'm mostly in, so I'm always the happiest flyer ever... But once again, only when the boyfriend is home.

I hear that Wicker Park sushi in Terminal 2 at O'Hare is very good. You might also be inspired if you visit their garden in Terminal 3. http://www.nbcnews.com/id/44628216/ns/travel-news/t/ohares-new-garden-supply-airport-restaurants/#.UQqEBx3O1cw

I have been the recipient of incredible customer service from airline personnel, but it has been the exception not the rule and it has been when an individual was courageous enough to make decisions based on his or her own personal sense of right or wrong, not because they were following airport or governmental policies. As far as what NOT to do in business? I think you've listed it above. 

I prefer the group strip search........

Fortunately most of my 'travel' is local and I don't have to endure the horrors. My best friend is in sales for the Dornier Corp out of Charlotte and he basically covers the 'world' so he travels all the time and he could probably add to this. He hates to travel, it quit being fun and exciting a long time ago.

I saw him last night in Orlando and this morning at the Orlando airport he had a 2 hour delay on his flight because of the weather/front that just went through. Just another reason to love the experience, huh? 

Agree with all of this, except I have to say that Newark Liberty has a really wide selection of food. And agree about this not just being the U.S. In fact, the Rome airport makes U.S. airports seem like the pinnacle of efficiency.