he cramped quarters and feeling of helplessness that comes with flying thousands of feet over the ground is terrifying enough, but today there is also the threat of hijackers and the competence of outsourced airline workers to worry about.
After Sept. 11, 2001, many Americans postponed or canceled their travel plans. Years later, air travel still has not returned to post-9/11 figures, but it has shown a steady increase.
Airlines have tried to lure customers back to flying by offering special deals and decreased ticket prices.
The average price of airfare has shown a steady decrease since 9/11, which has led to an increase in the number of passengers traveling by plane. Recently, Jet Blue flight 292 had landing difficulties coming into LAX, with the front landing gear turned 90 degrees the wrong way, causing a scare. But the National Transportation Safety Board said that this was a common event and that the media’s hype was over the top.
The live coverage of this event caused panic among the passengers, who should not have feared for their lives. One Canadian study found that since 1989, there have been 67 incidents of the front landing gear malfunctioning on an airbus.
News coverage lately has been more centered on creating hype and entertainment, so it’s no wonder the media covered the Jet Blue incident so closely.
Although some airlines have simply canceled their in-flight meals to make budget cuts, others have had to resort to outsourcing important jobs, like maintenance and mechanics.
Budget cuts have also caused the FAA to lose some 300 of its 3,400 staff this year and next. This is a major concern because most airlines are continually growing and there may not be enough inspectors to do the job right.
Northwest and Delta Airlines have both declared bankruptcy and hope to dig their way out of trouble by outsourcing jobs. Delta has had to outsource 45 percent, or nearly 2,000 jobs, of its maintenance crew to hire cheaper outside labor. The jobs are now going to those who will work the cheapest, not those who are most qualified to work.
Northwest Airlines mechanics went on strike to protest the company outsourcing their jobs to third party companies.Today, about 50 percent of the jobs are outsourced, compared to only 33 percent 10 years ago.
Some passengers are concerned that these factors will affect flight safety, but the FAA is helping alleviate these concerns by keeping their stringent regulations in place for all workers of airlines traveling to or from America so that more jobs can be kept in the United States and security concerns can be addressed before they get the chance to leave the ground.
