THE CEO of United Airlines has shared his thoughts on the industry.
He described budget air travel as “dead” and said companies who follow the model are out to “trick people”.
United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby shared criticized the budget airline model (stock image)[/caption]
While United Airlines has never self-described as a budget airline, it still manages to manages to rank among the country’s “Big Four”.
This list is rounded out by American Airlines, Delta Airlines, and Southwest Airlines.
And out of these dominating top four, only Southwest employs a budget model.
United CEO Scott Kirby recently revealed there is a good reason why his company does not identify the same.
Kirby became CEO of United Airlines back in 2020 and has been vocal about his thoughts on the industry during his time at the helm.
Recently, he spoke with The Wall Street Journal about the current state of the airline industry.
During the interview, the CEO was asked about his views on budget airlines.
And he did not hold back as he spoke out against the entire model.
“It’s dead, it’s a crappy model,” he told The Wall Street Journal.
He went on to say he thinks the entire model is focused on trying to “trick people”.
According to Kirby, the focus of this set-up is to get as much money out of customers rather than actually meeting their needs.
“The model was screw the customer. I mean, it was,” he explained.
“Trick people, get them to buy, get them to come, and charge them a whole bunch of fees they aren’t expecting.”
And while this practice might work once, he pointed out that it does not encourage return custom.
He said passengers rarely want to go back to those budget airlines, making it hard to build customer loyalty.
TSA’s 3-1-1 rule
The Transportation Security Administration regulates the amount of liquids, aerosols, and gels that flyers can bring through airport security with the 3-1-1 liquids rule.
The 3-1-1 rule consists of the following:
Each container of liquid has to be 3.4 ounces or less.
All liquids have to fit in one clear, quart-sized, resealable bag.
Finally, passengers can only bring one bag of liquids each.
“Their problem is that they got big enough that they needed repeat customers. They don’t get them,” Kirby continued.
He revealed that he wants United to take a different approach.
Rather than luring in customers with cheap prices and hidden fees, he plans to provide a good service that results in customers returning in the future.
However, he did point out that United will have some of the lowest fares for the foreseeable future this summer, and encouraged customers to take advantage.
The reduced rates apply to travelers flying in and out of a busy East Coast airport.
The CEO of United revealed the airline is offering its cheapest summer rates right now (stock image)[/caption]
