9.16.2007

the best care in the air

This is sad news. An article in the Kansas City Star is reporting that Midwest Airlines, recently the object of a hostile takeover effort by AirTran, has agreed to be bought by a private equity firm in Texas. Northwest Airlines will provide 47 percent of the funding.

Midwest Airlines has long been one of my favorite airlines (although I've only flown it once). Here's what they say about themselves:
The minute you walk onto one of our aircraft, you know Midwest is different. Wide leather seats, superior service, chocolate chip cookies baked onboard and competitive fares have helped us earn our reputation as "the best care in the air." Add our Midwest Connect regional service and there's something for both business and leisure travelers alike.
What I really love about Midwest? They have two-across seating on many of their flights. In other words, every seat on the plane is as wide as a first class seat on a normal airline. Although they have had to economize to survive during the industry downturn, Midwest still "gets" the idea of customer service. Midwest is virtually the only airline out there that offers comfortable seating for every passenger on the plane.

And Northwest is going to have a 47 percent interest in Midwest? What will happen to the best care in the air? After all, Northwest is a typical airline that crams six seats across a narrow body jet with just 31 inches of leg room. Northwest is the airline that kept passengers trapped for hours on 75 airplanes during the a blizzard in Detroit last January without food and drink, with lavatories that became inoperable.

NWA has cut costs so drastically that they don't keep enough pilots employed to be able to fulfill its entire flight schedule at the end of the month. They have outsourced their aircraft maintenance, further disrupting service. Northwest cut costs at the expense of their employees, while executives maintain their bloated salaries and perks.

What happens when the airline with "The Best Care in the Air" is acquired by an airline that doesn't seem to care at all?


copyright (c) 2007 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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