UK airport users asked for comments on overall experience

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) will be asking UK airport users to rate various aspects of their air travel experiences in a new survey.

Responding to a request made by the secretary of state for guidance on how best to improve the experiences of air passengers in Britain, the CAA is planning to seek the views of travellers at major London airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted – and at Manchester Airport as well.

The opinion of various groups will be sought, ranging from premium class travellers to economy-class travellers and from those flying on both short-haul and long-haul services.

The survey will also provide a means for respondents to air grievances and to provide positive feedback on all aspects of the air travel experience, from purchasing tickets to the airport process beginning at check-in, and the in-flight experience as well.

The director of consumer protection for the CAA, Richard Jackson, commented: “The results of a survey of hundreds of passengers travelling through the UK’s largest airports will help ensure that the CAA can identify those stages of the journey that are working well and those where passengers stand to benefit most from improvement.

He continued: “I encourage all those who are approached at airports to tell us about their travel experience.”

Over the past two weeks, the airport experience at a number of UK airports nearly took a turn for the worse when strikes by ground personnel were threatened at Gatwick, Manchester and Stansted airports, but were averted at the last minute following successful talks with union representatives.

www.caa.co.uk