Fri, Oct 06, 2006
Carry-On Restrictions To Blame
While more passengers
may be flying commercial airlines than in recent times... their
bags may not be making the same trip, following security
restrictions placed on carry-on luggage in August.
Airlines reported lost or mishandled baggage complaints climbed
nearly 25 percent in August, to a daily average of over 14,000
bags. That increase is directly related to the ban on carry-on luggage
implemented following the August 10 arrest of suspects in
Britain connected to a planned plot to blow up airliners heading to
the US with liquid explosives.
"The increased number of bags being checked resulted in more
mishandlings," said Air Transport Association spokesman David
Castelveter.
MSNBC reports August was the worst month for baggage-handling
since December 2004... when massive problems at US Airways over the
holidays contributed to an all-time worst rate of 9.11 mishandled
bags per 1,000 passengers. The August number wasn't quite so high
-- 8.08/1,000 -- but that's a big increase over the July rate of
6.5.
Airline spokesmen say they're looking at ways to fix the
problem... but most were caught unprepared for the huge increase in
checked bags. Predictably, as restrictions on liquids have eased...
most carriers are reporting fewer checked bags, and fewer
errors.
Oddly, on-time rates improved in August, despite higher
passenger rates... increased security... and all the baggage
handling problems.
Hmmm... maybe the airlines need to slow down a bit. Nah.
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