Consumer Reports rates US Airlines

[amirm]

Based on my experience with half the list they got it right:

1. Virigin America. This is one amazing airline. Domestic first class is like international first class with superb seating and amenities. And hard to believe that they charge such reasonable prices. If I were not so married to my frequent flier program, I would use them all the time.

2. Southwest airlines. Always gets good ratings. I don't like it because I have no status on it and get stuck with bad seats . Heard you can play extra and get to go on the plan sooner.

3. Hawaiian Airlines. Only flew them years and years ago. no experience now.

4. Alaska Airlines. My preferred airline seeing how its hub is in Seattle where I live. Service clearly better than the them ones below. I am million+ mile flier on United and they still treat me like dirt whereas in Alaska, even coach can have a smiling flight attendant and decent snacks.

5. Frontier No experience.

6. Delta. I do very little flying on them.

7. US Air. No experience.

8. American. Ditto

9. United. Used to fly them all the time. Per above, I think they deserve their super low ratings. Even their web site stinks. Employees don't seem to want to be there doing their job. What a shame given their large network. I use them when flying international. Flying first class there gets one sleeper seats and life is good. Otherwise, even business class get you ignored for 5-7 hours at time after paying $6,000 for a ticket.

10. Spirit. No experience.

 

[JackD201]

When I'm over there I fly the top three on this list. I never fly business class or first on any flight shorter than 9 hours. Virgin certainly has the better configuration, entertainment system and service. If Hawaiian is no.3, the others must be nothing more than flying buses. Not impressed with Hawaiian in the slightest.

 

[MylesBAstor]

Based on my experience with half the list they got it right:

1. Virigin America. This is one amazing airline. Domestic first class is like international first class with superb seating and amenities. And hard to believe that they charge such reasonable prices. If I were not so married to my frequent flier program, I would use them all the time.

2. Southwest airlines. Always gets good ratings. I don't like it because I have no status on it and get stuck with bad seats . Heard you can play extra and get to go on the plan sooner.

3. Hawaiian Airlines. Only flew them years and years ago. no experience now.

4. Alaska Airlines. My preferred airline seeing how its hub is in Seattle where I live. Service clearly better than the them ones below. I am million+ mile flier on United and they still treat me like dirt whereas in Alaska, even coach can have a smiling flight attendant and decent snacks.

5. Frontier No experience.

6. Delta. I do very little flying on them.

7. US Air. No experience.

8. American. Ditto

9. United. Used to fly them all the time. Per above, I think they deserve their super low ratings. Even their web site stinks. Employees don't seem to want to be there doing their job. What a shame given their large network. I use them when flying international. Flying first class there gets one sleeper seats and life is good. Otherwise, even business class get you ignored for 5-7 hours at time after paying $6,000 for a ticket.

10. Spirit. No experience.

Spirit is the God awful worst airline I've ever flown. Their motto should be fly on a wing and a prayer. There's no legroom and it was so bad that I took a picture to prove it (I'll upload it if I can find it on my cellphone). They never take off on time and their customer service is the absolute worst. Plus, their "inexpensive" prices are a fraud; by the time you calculate all the extra charges (that are double any other airline), they are just as, if not more expensive, than any other airline. The only worse airline I flew on was American West. I'll never fly on them ever again.

One "inexpensive" carrier that I have had good luck with was AirTran and fly them to Vegas often for CES.

 

[rblnr]

Unfortunately the top 5 haven't been much use to me. I find all the majors; United, Delta, American, US Air, etc. to be equally mediocre. More unhappy employees than not.

 

[mep]

Spirit is the God awful worst airline I've ever flown. Their motto should be fly on a wing and a prayer. There's no legroom and it was so bad that I took a picture to prove it (I'll upload it if I can find it on my cellphone). They never take off on time and their customer service is the absolute worst. Plus, their "inexpensive" prices are a fraud; by the time you calculate all the extra charges (that are double any other airline), they are just as, if not more expensive, than any other airline. The only worse airline I flew on was American West. I'll never fly on them ever again.

One "inexpensive" carrier that I have had good luck with was AirTran and fly them to Vegas often for CES.

Myles-If you feel you have no leg room, you can imagine how guys that are over 6' tall feel! If I never had to fly again, I would be ok with it. The whole experience sucks from beginning to end.

 

[mep]

Based on my experience with half the list they got it right:

1. Virigin America. This is one amazing airline. Domestic first class is like international first class with superb seating and amenities. And hard to believe that they charge such reasonable prices. If I were not so married to my frequent flier program, I would use them all the time.

I have never flown on Virgin, but I have heard lots of great things about them.

2. Southwest airlines. Always gets good ratings. I don't like it because I have no status on it and get stuck with bad seats . Heard you can play extra and get to go on the plan sooner.

Southwest doesn't charge to check the first bag which saves you more than you need to pay the fee for early boarding "Group A." I used to detest Southwest because I didn't like the 'cattle call' feel of the airline. However, their flight attendants are always friendly and act like they still give a damn which is more than you can say for most airlines. Plus, they still serve peanuts which used to be looked down on and now are treasured.

3. Hawaiian Airlines. Only flew them years and years ago. no experience now.

I have never flown them and have no comments.

4. Alaska Airlines. My preferred airline seeing how its hub is in Seattle where I live. Service clearly better than the them ones below. I am million+ mile flier on United and they still treat me like dirt whereas in Alaska, even coach can have a smiling flight attendant and decent snacks.

Never flown them and have no comments.

5. Frontier No experience.

Me neither. I thought they had a reputation for falling out of the sky though.

6. Delta. I do very little flying on them.

I think Delta is pretty good compared to the horrible competition. I have had many good flights on Delta.

7. US Air. No experience.

Tons of experience with US Air. Once upon a time around 1990, they were a great airline. They have been on the decline for years and they currently suck as much as any other bad quality airline sucks.

8. American. Ditto

I have flown American many times and they used to be a great airline. Like so many others, they have gone down hill over the years.

9. United. Used to fly them all the time. Per above, I think they deserve their super low ratings. Even their web site stinks. Employees don't seem to want to be there doing their job. What a shame given their large network. I use them when flying international. Flying first class there gets one sleeper seats and life is good. Otherwise, even business class get you ignored for 5-7 hours at time after paying $6,000 for a ticket.

Another formally great airline that went into the tank. I have flown on United tons of times over the years and have witnessed the steady decline that happened after airline deregulation.

10. Spirit. No experience.

Another scary airline that seems to have planes with too many mechanical problems. I have never flown them and have no first-hand experience.

 

[MylesBAstor]

Myles-If you feel you have no leg room, you can imagine how guys that are over 6' tall feel! If I never had to fly again, I would be ok with it. The whole experience sucks from beginning to end.

Exactly! I gotta find the pic of my knees hitting the seat in front of me and I'm only 5-6

 

[mep]

Exactly! I gotta find the pic of my knees hitting the seat in front of me and I'm only 5-6

You can imagine how I feel at 6' 3". DVTs are a serious risk from flying, specially if you are crammed into your seat with little room to move your legs during flight. The airlines don't warn you about that as they really don't want you up and moving around during flight. I have had numerous DVTs from flying and have paid the price for them.

 

[Matt193]

I've flown multiple times on Frontier since Milwaukee was one of their hubs. Their planes were always clean and on time and the crew was always courteous. The nice thing about them is that I could typically fly out of my small regional airport to Milwaukee for under $100 each way which more than makes up for dealing with parking and a long 4 hour drive home after stepping off a plane. Frontier has since pulled out of all the small regional airports in Wisconsin and for the most part Delta has replaced them. I have also used Airtran in the past and have no complaints.

 

[rbbert]

I don't fly that much, but that certainly doesn't stop me from having opinions based on my limited experience

Southwest and Alaska are great, United sucks, and I've never flown Virgin.

 

[Greg_R]

3. Hawaiian Airlines. Only flew them years and years ago. no experience now.

My wife and I flew them this September to the big island & Kauai (6 flights total) and had a superb experience (great coffee, they actually serve a meal in coach, etc.). I fly Southwest most of the time (most of my travel is to Austin and Baltimore) and they are a great option if you don't want 1st class amenities especially if you have a lot of bags. I had a bad experience on Alaskan and refuse to use them anymore.

9. United. Used to fly them all the time. Per above, I think they deserve their super low ratings. Even their web site stinks. Employees don't seem to want to be there doing their job. What a shame given their large network. I use them when flying international. Flying first class there gets one sleeper seats and life is good. Otherwise, even business class get you ignored for 5-7 hours at time after paying $6,000 for a ticket.

I assume you try to use their partners when travelling overseas (Lufthansa, etc.)? I usually end up on Lufthansa when travelling to India and haven't had any complaints.

 

[Greg_R]

Oh yes... the Virgin clubhouse passes are absolutely worth the $40-$50.

 

[astrotoy]

I agree that Virgin America is the best domestic carrier. However, their first class is not like international business or first. International almost always has flat beds on business and even more on first (Singapore, Emirates, Virgin Atlantic, Cathay Pacific, even Delta, United and American). VA's first class is more like a good premium economy on international (I'm talking about Virgin Atlantic, Cathay Pacific). Their first class is not that cheap.

Jet Blue is missing from the list. If you pay an extra $20 each way, you get a pretty good coach seat with extra legroom. I think it is the best bargain, since the fares are generally pretty cheap and no first class.

Southwest only has four seats with extra legroom - if I am in the middle of the A line, I can often get one of those. They are about half way back at the emergency row - 3 on one side (including a middle seat) and one (with really extra leg room) on the other side. Often the flight attendant stands there, blocking the row, so most people pass on by (or they have taken the front rows to get off the plane first), so if you indicate you want the seat, they move out of the way. I like their flight attendants and ground crews and the little interaction I've had with their pilots.

The few times I've flown Alaska have been good.

All major domestics are mediocre or worse. US Air is lowest on my list, with United and American tied for second. Since US Air and American look like they are merging, the bottom of the list will be shorter.

If you are able to fly international business, the world changes. Singapore is my favorite, and Virgin Atlantic is very fine, especially their lounges.

Larry

 

[asindc]

Based on my experience with half the list they got it right:

1. Virigin America. This is one amazing airline. Domestic first class is like international first class with superb seating and amenities. And hard to believe that they charge such reasonable prices. If I were not so married to my frequent flier program, I would use them all the time.

2. Southwest airlines. Always gets good ratings. I don't like it because I have no status on it and get stuck with bad seats . Heard you can play extra and get to go on the plan sooner.

3. Hawaiian Airlines. Only flew them years and years ago. no experience now.

4. Alaska Airlines. My preferred airline seeing how its hub is in Seattle where I live. Service clearly better than the them ones below. I am million+ mile flier on United and they still treat me like dirt whereas in Alaska, even coach can have a smiling flight attendant and decent snacks.

5. Frontier No experience.

6. Delta. I do very little flying on them.

7. US Air. No experience.

8. American. Ditto

9. United. Used to fly them all the time. Per above, I think they deserve their super low ratings. Even their web site stinks. Employees don't seem to want to be there doing their job. What a shame given their large network. I use them when flying international. Flying first class there gets one sleeper seats and life is good. Otherwise, even business class get you ignored for 5-7 hours at time after paying $6,000 for a ticket.

10. Spirit. No experience.

Well, I hope CR does a better job of evaluating airlines than they do cars and electronics. That said, I agree that United deserves its low rating. A shame really, as they used to be the gold standard.