Nov 20, 2007 7:03 pm US/Central
Airlines Work To Improve On-Time Performance
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Amid news of the worst on-time performance ever recorded, an estimated 27 million people are getting set to take to the skies this holiday season.
Airlines are doing whatever they can to make sure things run smoothly. Fort Worth-based American and Dallas-based Southwest Airlines both gave CBS 11 News exclusive behind the scenes access to show what they're doing to get you home safely and on time.
On December 29th, 2006, storms shut down Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for hours, causing more than 250 flight delays and cancellations. Hundreds of passengers were stranded, and some were even held on planes for as long as eight hours.
Events that day sparked a call for change, even from President Bush. "We can do better. We can have an aviation system that's improved," the President said during a news conference last week on the subject.
Since January, Tim Niznik and his team at American Airlines have worked to develop new technology to help deal with massive disruptions.
"We can't control what causes a diversion event, but we can control how we responded to that," says Niznik. "We're trying to minimize the amount of time that you are stuck on a plane in a place other than your final destination."
Before this year, most diversion tracking was done by hand. And like last December, mistakes were often made. In January, a new program called Diversion Tracker was launched. The program keeps track of all diverted flights second by second, and can catch a potential mistake before it happens.
"We can avoid those situations where we put too many planes at a given station, and avoid those situations where we take an inordinate amount of time to process them," Niznik said.
In the airline's DFW ramp tower, dispatchers keep close eyes on each plane at the airport. They're working with new tools, like the Taxi Monitor program, to help keep track of aircraft on the ground. The program times how long a plane sits on the tarmac. If that time reaches the four-hour mark, dispatchers and the crew onboard begin to make arrangements to bring the plane back to the gate. At that time, passengers are asked if they want to get off the airplane. But there's a catch.
According to the Managing Director of External Communications for American Airlines, Charlie Wilson, "If you deplane, the plane runs the chance of it losing its spot in line."
That means if even one person decides they want to get off, the plane could potentially lose its place in line to take off when things begin moving again. That could then cause even more delays for that particular flight.
American is also testing a new self-service rebooking station in DFW Airport's Terminal C. If your flight is delayed or canceled, instead of waiting in line to talk to an agent, you can now see what's available and even re-book yourself. In some key markets, the airline is even blocking out a number of seats to use solely for re-booking purposes.
"We have to find the right balance in providing customers those options when we are disruptive," says Mark Mitchell, managing director of customer experience.
Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines is also taking steps to keep its passengers moving. Flight crews now have the option to leave up to five minutes early if all passengers are on board and ready to go.
"If we start picking up a few minutes downline, we have those extra minutes because we've gotten there a few minutes early," said Steve Hozdulick, Southwest Airlines Director of Operational Performance.
When delays and diversions happen, a team in Southwest's dispatch center works to make sure one particular airport isn't getting overwhelmed.
Senior Director Steve West says the process can be an intricate 'dance'. "We have to watch that flow into Dallas so it doesn't get overloaded, and then it ultimately impacts the customer waiting on the airplane waiting to get to a gate."
In delay or cancellation situations, Fred Taylor and his communications team will contact passengers within 24 hours of the problem. "We want to send them a personal note that says, 'Hey, we're sorry this happened. Here are some of the circumstances surrounding that event.' And most importantly 'Come back and give us another try.'"
The government is also acting quickly. From November 21 through November 25, the Pentagon has opened up certain military space along the east coast to create so-called "Thanksgiving Express Lane" for commercial flights. Government official's hope the extra 'space' will help cut down on delays to major hubs like New York City where 75-percent of the nation's delays originate.
Remember to always check your flight status before you leave for the airport. And on most airline websites, you can even set up email and text message flight status alerts that are sent directly to your cell phone.
Travel experts say, when possible, it's also a good idea to print out your boarding pass before you get to the airport to help cut down on the time you wait in line. To avoid additional time at security checkpoints, travelers can also review the latest TSA security procedures online.
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