Travel Tips

Travel Tip: Air Travel is Getting Worse

plane 2The numbers are out, and it’s not your imagination. Air travel is getting worse.

Every month, the Department of Transportation compiles data from the airlines, and analysis from researchers at Wichita State shows that flying is getting more difficult.

In 2014, the number of on-­time flight arrivals dropped to 76.2 percent, down nearly 2 percent from the previous year.

The amount of lost, stolen, or delayed luggage increased by 13 percent.

The number of passengers getting bumped from their flights due to overbooking increased by 3 percent.

Because of mergers and consolidations, there are fewer planes and less competition, and more people are traveling than a few years ago.

With congestion like that, it’s practically unavoidable to have overloaded planes. In fact, planes are flying at an 80 percent load factor.

The good news is that airlines are ordering new planes and are putting money into improving the onboard experience. The bad news? A lot of that attention is going to premium class seats. So coach travelers, you’ve been warned.

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