Evaluating the airline experience and service quality

Introduction

The airline industry, which has been growing steadily since the Second World War, reached

4.1 billion passengers in 2017 , which is expected to nearly double to reach 7.8 billion

passengers by 2036[ CITATION Ata19 \l 1033 ]. With the increasing importance for

development of economic globalization and technological advancements, airline industry is

forced to make innovation in their in-flight services by leveraging external deregulation as

well as internal restructuring to establish more efficient and competitive business models.

Innovation in airline industry can be achieved by creating a synergy between new business

models, advanced customer experimental services and new technologies [ CITATION

Xin08 \l 1033 ] as air travel has been classified as one of the most intangible service

industries[ CITATION Bak13 \l 1033 ].

A critical literature review has revealed that airline industry is constantly struggling between

providing superior quality services and managing challenges such as cutting costs, fluctuating

demands, and satisfying customer needs. For the purpose of the research study, we have

chosen American Airlines Inc. which is a major American airline headquartered in Fort

Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It is the world's largest airline when

measured by fleet size, scheduled passengers carried, and revenue passenger mile. The study

will aid in developing a comprehensive report of the airline- passenger service encounters

while proposing recommendations for improving service quality.

[ CITATION Bha18 \l 1033 ]

American airline is a legacy carrier, as it has established interstate route prior to the Airline

Deregulation Act of 1978 which has established interstate routes before the beginning of

route liberalization. They are referred as full-service carriers that offers higher standard

services and amenities compared to low-cost carriers.

With the increase in the size of the low-cost airlines, full legacy carriers are struggling in

balancing the service expectations of their loyal customers by finding new ways to compete

with low-cost airlines through targeting each market segment and tailor-made marketing

strategies. It is not possible to satisfy all the market segments at the same time as customers

have preferential preferences based on their needs and wants. Hence, the overall aim for
market segment is to identify high yield market segments[ CITATION Cam18 \l 1033 ].

Particularly, in the tourism industry, the business traveller is usually considered as an

attractive segment. The various types of business travellers are classified below-

1. The Hard Money Travellers (or the independent business travellers), these include the

business individuals travelling at their own expense;

2. The Soft Money Travellers (or corporate business travellers), these include business

individuals travelling on an expense account;

3. The Medium Money Travellers (or the conference or incentive business travellers),

these include business individuals travelling within a group;

4. The Interim Travellers, these include business travellers who are combining personal

travel with a business trip;

5. The Frequent Short Travellers, these include business travellers who consistently fly a

short-haul route;

6. The Periodic Travellers, these include sales persons who make a round of stops on a

steady itinerary.

Previous research studies have argued that service quality is the process based on the

evaluations of consumers about the expected and perceived service [ CITATION Cam18 \l

1033 ] which leads to higher customer satisfaction. Service quality for airlines are the

satisfactory level of the interaction between passengers and airline employees while

providing transportation services which are core products that positively affects brand image,

satisfaction and perceived value. Value for money is the overall assessment of product utility

based on the perceptions of what is received and what is paid. The model below represents
the service encounters based on the customer reviews and secondary research. American

airlines (legacy carrier) compete with other low cost carrier by offering ingenious solutions

through offering additional value added services to their loyal customers.

The innovative in-flight services include four dimensions such as seat comfort, staff service,

food and beverages, and in-flight entertainment. Apparently seat comfort has become as a

necessity rather than luxury[ CITATION Ata19 \l 1033 ]. The study conducted by Airbus,

revealed that long haul economy passengers are willing to pay more over seat comfort in long

flights. Hence, understanding the importance of in-flight services, airlines are trying to

differentiate and increase their ancillary revenues by creating more suitable options, such as

emergency exit and front row sales. Other airlines have also introduced premium economy
class to cater the needs and expectations of passengers who requires more legroom, broader

options for food and beverages, etc. The premium class, which is about 10–15% more

expensive than the economy class, is about 65% less costly than business class[ CITATION

Ata19 \l 1033 ]. Another dimension of the study is staff service which includes

responsiveness and empathy of the cabin crew which are the representatives of airlines on

board. The study concluded that the attitude of the cabin crew significantly affects customer

satisfaction through premium services. Food and beverage quality are the third most

important variable as studies revealed that the quality of food and beverages is greatly

affected by the staff service attributed in-flight entertainment. In other words, airlines are

making in-flight innovations in attaining competitive advantage and creating value for their

passengers.
References

Xinhui, R. (2008, June ). A study of service innovation in airlines based on experiential

services.

Baker, D. M. (2013). Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction in the Airline Industry: A

Comparison between Legacy Airlines and Low-Cost Airlines. American Journal of

Tourism Research, 2(1), 67-77.

Bhasin, H. (2018, March 6). Marketing Strategy of American Airlines – American Airlines

Marketing Strategy. Retrieved from https://www.marketing91.com/marketing-

strategy-american-airlines/

Camiller, M. A. (2018). Market Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning. Springer, Cham,

Switzerland.

Atalık, Ö., Bakır, M., & Akan, S. (2019). The Role of In-Flight Service Quality on Value for

Money in Business Class: A Logit Model on the Airline Industry. Administrative

Sciences .