US mulls bill of rights for air passengers

US mulls bill of rights for air passengers
By Doug Cameron in Chicago
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2007
Published: April 10 2007 22:51 | Last updated: April 10 2007 22:51


Grassroots support for an airline passengers’ bill of rights in the US will receive its first political test on Wednesday, despite opposition from both the industry and established consumer groups.

The issue will come before a Senate committee on Wednesday and will be discussed by a House committee this month.

An internet campaign led by Kate Hanni, a Californian real-estate agent stranded on an American Airlines flight last December, has bolstered demands for a legislated passenger charter, almost 30 years after the US industry was deregulated.

Ms Hanni, who arrived in Washington on Tuesday to address the hearing, has tapped a populist streak among passengers facing more crowded flights and delays. Her internet campaign boasts 15,000 signatures.

The hearings come amid growing disquiet about service levels in the industry. The issue was elevated to the political stage by the high-profile “trapping” of JetBlue passengers for several hours on aircraft at New York’s JFK airport during an ice storm in February.

The incident spawned two bills that would give passengers the right to leave an aircraft stranded on the ground for more than three hours, subject to safety considerations. The bills – backed by two senators and a congressman – are viewed as impractical by airlines and most consumer groups.

Most delays are linked to weather and an antiquated air traffic control system. However, delays in February rose to their second-highest level in recent years, and service levels have fallen for three years in a row.

Ms Hanni’s Coalition for an Airline Passengers’ Bill of Rights has prospered despite the opposition of groups such as the Air Travellers’ Association, which has rejec-ted a bill of rights. The consumer group’s concerns echoed those of the Air Transport Association, representing the largest carriers, which views the proposed bill as naïve.

Critics point to a situation in which a single passenger could demand to be let off an aircraft, even if the majority wanted to wait for take-off.

“It’s not like a parking lot. You can’t just get out of line,” says Dave Castelveter at the Air Transport Association. Returning to drop off a passenger could cause further delays, especially in bad weather when further de- icing might be required.

The proposed bill of rights would also require airliners to carry extra food and drink in case of severe delays. But the Air Travellers’ Association says this would add to the weight and fuel costs – pushing up air fares.

Dave Neeleman, the chief executive of JetBlue, says legislation would be counterproductive, despite introducing a bill of rights for his own airline in the wake of the problems in February. “Eighty-five per cent of what we had in the bill of rights is what we’ve been doing since day one,” said Mr Neeleman.