Kritischer Observer-Bericht zu No-Frills-Airlines

[touchdown99]

Sunday May 19, 2002

The Observer

 

 

The Observer has been provided with a disturbing insight of the current state of the 'no-frills' industry amid growing concerns that airlines are turning what should have been a cheaper golden age of travel into one of the most unpleasant experiences people can have.

 

A senior industry source with experience of managing major UK airports said: 'Stress is going through the roof on all fronts. Airlines have got to the point where they no longer give a shit about their passengers. To them, it's a taxi service, where all they want to do is ferry people from A to B then leave them on their own for someone else to deal with.

 

'They've been squeezing every last drop of profit from their customers while forgetting they're supposed to look after people and treat them with decency.

 

'I've seen OAPs, the sick and the vulnerable wandering dazed and confused around airport terminals because there is simply no staff available to deal with their welfare or onward arrangements. Check-in staff, already suffering extremely high levels of stress, simply have no time to deal with people like that.'

 

Furthermore, the growth of no-frills travel is expected to increase 40-fold over the next decade and there will be serious problems ahead.

 

'What started as an exciting adventure to break the monopoly of the big airlines has turned into a gold rush among the no-frills carriers, where avarice at the expense of decency has become the major driver in the travel sector,' the source said.

 

'It's a shame and if they think it will last forever, they are sorely mistaken - because people will eventually say enough is enough.'