Best and Worst Airlines - Airline Quality Report 2012

These studies don't mean much. For example American's OTP for last year is an anomaly account of the labor issues associated with contract negotiations.

I know to people who flew Virgin America in 2012 on different routes and both hated their experience.

The bottom line is if you like American you're going to fly American, if you like Delta you're going to fly Delta. If all you care about is the price of your ticket you're going to fly whoever is the cheapest regardless of which airline it is or how they rank in a study.

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Virgin America best U.S. airline, United worst: study

Reuters) - Virgin America did the best job of flying customers last year while United Airlines was the worst, though passengers experienced overall better performance, a study showed.

The performance of the 14 leading carriers in 2012 was about the same as the best year ever in 2011, according to the 23rd annual national Airline Quality Rating (AQR), which ranks airlines based on U.S. Department of Transportation figures.

The industry improved in two of four areas: on-time performance and baggage handling. Involuntary denied boardings and customer complaint rated were higher, the study said.

"Every time there are more planes in the sky and more people flying, airline performance suffers," said Dean Headley, associate professor of marketing at the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/08/us-usa-airlines-qualityreport-idUSBRE9370I620130408

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United comes in last as airline ratings improve

Chicago's most dominant airline, United Airlines, rated worst in America last year for the flying public, although the airline industry overall performed at a high level in 2012, according to a report released Monday.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/breaking/chi-united-racks-up-most-passenger-complaints-in-latest-airline-study-20130408,0,2716176.story