The subscribers of Travel + Leisure were asked in the annual World’s Best survey to rate airlines’ customer experience, from website design to loyalty programs to face-to-face customer service.
Many respondents took the opportunity to showcase some of the World’s Worst behaviors in travel, such as the impression of increased rudeness and disinterest among airport staff tending to travelers’ problems.
Here’s a breakdown of the airlines that readers rated least favorably.
10. Iberia
Survey respondents called out Iberia flight crew for being inattentive and unfriendly. The Spanish carrier doesn't quite engender a lot of love on review sites such as Yelp, either. Reviewers consistently point to poor/destructive baggage handling and problematic customer service.
9. Alitalia
Respondents gave Italy's flag carrier poor marks for bad service and disorganization, leading to confused boarding processes. American consumers reviewing the airline on Consumer Affairs rated the airline 1 star out of 5 from 178 reviews.
8. Air China
The JFK-Beijing route is especially reviled, with travelers taking to Air China's perceived lack of disruption support in the form of knowledgeable and attentive customer service. Yelp user Grace L shared this tidbit on Yelp:
"Without incident, Air China is probably just fine. But if there is an incident, cue customer rage. Horrendous customer support."
The airline has 2 stars on Yelp, 4 out of 10 on AirlineRatings.com and 5 out of 10 on Skytrax.
7. United Airlines
United is the only operating U.S. legacy carrier to make this list. United is also the least loved airline on Yelp, garnering only 1.5 stars for a litany of poor customer service experiences and operational delays. One review was especially memorable, with traveler Jennifer K likening the experience to a bad dream:
"Now I am having recurring nightmare that I am stuck in a long haul UA flight."
T+L respondents complained about seat comfort and unclear procedures during overbooked flights, with one saying:
"The United Board and the executives should be forced to ride in coach class for a week, including cancelled connections and lost luggage. Hell isn't as bad as this airline."
6. US Airways
US Airways actually tied with United for the lowest rated airline on Yelp. Now the airline has been fully merged into American Airlines, making this the airline's last appearance on any customer satisfaction survey. Reviewers on Consumer Affairs left 255 ratings during the airline's tenure — and left only an average of 1 star for inconsistent operations and customer experience.
5. Frontier Airlines
The reviews across various platforms, from Yelp to ConsumerAffairs to Skytrax, are all overwhelmingly negative. Reviewers point to cramped seats, angry staff and lengthy delays as reasons for the poor reviews. And according to the Forbes and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University, Frontier was late on a record 40% of holiday flights over the course of the last few years.
One Skytrax reviewer, and longtime Frontier flier, called the airline "disgraceful" for its "unsafe" seats:
"These seats represent what happens when an airline crosses the line in an effort to cut costs. I will never book another ticket on Frontier Airlines."
4. American Eagle
Flying small commuter jets are always a trying travel experience: cramped seats, low headroom and noisy engines. Thankfully, new planes are making the rounds on the commuter routes, as airlines focus on increasing connections beyond the hub-and-spoke model. American Eagle has some work to do to shift perceptions, with reviewers across the Web offering mixed reviews.
3. Allegiant
The low-cost carriers continue to post poor customer reviews. Allegiant is particularly vulnerable, even triggering the Twitter handle @AllegiantSucks that sporadically tracks and retweets customer complaints. The handle mentions frustrating experiences, usually related to lengthy delays in travel times — and baggage handling.
2. easyJet
easyJet has long been known as a no-frills airline that charges customers for virtually everything —even for proof their flight was canceled. This means a lower investment in overhead, which indicates that low fares do come with a cost: less investment in customer service and tight schedules that leave little breathing room for disruptions.
1. Spirit Airlines
Spirit often offers lower prices than any other U.S. carrier, but apparently the cheap prices aren't enough to satisfy the T+L crowd, as Spirit ranked last.
One reader said:
"Worst airline in the world. If they could figure out a way to charge for oxygen, they would do it. Used to fly them regularly but now I would pay more to avoid them."
The disdain permeates across other traveler review platforms. The airline has one of the highest rating and review counts on Consumer Affairs with 590 ratings and 1,550 reviews pegging the airline at a solid one star.
