Are India’s airlines compromising on passenger comfort? Here’s what a survey says
Indian flyers are unhappy! According to a recent survey conducted by community social media platform LocalCircles, as many as 9 in 10 respondents of the approximately 13,000 air passengers surveyed claimed that India’s airlines have been compromising on comfort and cutting corners over the past 24 months.
According to an ET report, since October, LocalCircles has witnessed a surge in complaints from fliers regarding excessive fares, flight cancellations, delays, denied boarding, damaged or misplaced luggage, exorbitant onboard food prices, silent changes in boarding gates, and rude behavior from staff at check-in counters. These complaints have reached a new peak this week as many travelers headed to airports for their Christmas and New Year holidays.
LocalCircles conducted a passenger sentiment survey, which received over 25,000 responses from air travelers across 284 districts in India, and shed light on a range of issues faced by passengers.Among the 12,902 fliers who participated in the survey, a significant 78% indicated that they had encountered one or more issues while flying in the last two years. The most common problems cited were related to in-flight services, including meals and entertainment, which were mentioned by 39% of respondents.
Additionally, 35% of passengers faced difficulties with boarding and check-in procedures as well as baggage handling, while 30% expressed dissatisfaction with poor aircraft interiors, including seats and entertainment systems.
Moreover, 17% of respondents reported issues with airlines failing to share timely information, 17% experienced flight delays, 9% encountered problems with airline staff behavior both on board and at the airport, and 9% faced other unidentified issues.
The survey also highlighted the problem of airlines overbooking and denying boarding to passengers who arrived a few minutes late, often accompanied by instances of rude behavior from staff.
According to an ET report, since October, LocalCircles has witnessed a surge in complaints from fliers regarding excessive fares, flight cancellations, delays, denied boarding, damaged or misplaced luggage, exorbitant onboard food prices, silent changes in boarding gates, and rude behavior from staff at check-in counters. These complaints have reached a new peak this week as many travelers headed to airports for their Christmas and New Year holidays.
LocalCircles conducted a passenger sentiment survey, which received over 25,000 responses from air travelers across 284 districts in India, and shed light on a range of issues faced by passengers.Among the 12,902 fliers who participated in the survey, a significant 78% indicated that they had encountered one or more issues while flying in the last two years. The most common problems cited were related to in-flight services, including meals and entertainment, which were mentioned by 39% of respondents.
Additionally, 35% of passengers faced difficulties with boarding and check-in procedures as well as baggage handling, while 30% expressed dissatisfaction with poor aircraft interiors, including seats and entertainment systems.
Moreover, 17% of respondents reported issues with airlines failing to share timely information, 17% experienced flight delays, 9% encountered problems with airline staff behavior both on board and at the airport, and 9% faced other unidentified issues.
The survey also highlighted the problem of airlines overbooking and denying boarding to passengers who arrived a few minutes late, often accompanied by instances of rude behavior from staff.
A total of 88% of the 12,823 respondents agreed that Indian airlines have been compromising on passenger comfort and cutting corners in the last two years.
Read From ET |Passengers survey on Indian airlines
The survey participants consisted of 64% men and 36% women. Geographically, 47% of respondents hailed from tier-1 cities, 33% from tier-2 cities, and 20% from tier-3, -4 cities, as well as rural districts.
