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Why Asian Airlines Reign Supreme
Wall Street Journal ^ | September 26, 2012 | Jennifer Chen

Posted on 09/26/2012 10:39:33 AM PDT by BlueStateRightist

It’s no secret that American carriers lag far behind their Asian counterparts when it comes to service and amenities. None of the big three U.S. airlines — Delta Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines — cracked the top 50 in airline consultancy Skytrax’s annual poll of the world’s best airlines, which was released this summer.

(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: airline; travel
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To: Dick Bachert

I don’t doubt that is true. I also imagine that KAL makes money while the U.S. carriers are forever on the edge. That translates into the bean counters cutting corners and jerking around the employees. Then throw in the unions to further poison the well, and it makes for a mess.


21 posted on 09/26/2012 11:15:01 AM PDT by sphinx
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To: BlueStateRightist
When I go to Việt Nam I prefer Asian carriers for the long haul. I made the mistake of flying United one time and managed to lose my luggage twice (two sets). One set I got back after I had returned home. the other set was sent directly to Chicago from Atlanta while I went to Hong Kong on that leg. United knew where it was and an employee in Chicago said he had seen it and could have it back to me the same week. United vetoed that and told me at first that I would have to pay freight charges to have my bags shipped back to Florida from Chicago then later, that I had no legally enforceable claim on United and they would not give me back my luggage. Henceforth I will pay the extra money to fly on KAL which is usually the one available on the dates I need. I can fly on an American carrier for short hops but the "surliness" and downright antagonism of the staff is not tolerable for longer than a couple hours in the air. If I have to go to Seattle I will drive or hitchhike.

As for those "beautiful stewardesses" well Korean official standards of female beauty are pretty strange to this extreme appreciator of Asian Women and it is those standards that get Korean stewardesses selected. Out of deference to their highsuperb quality as staff I will not say more about it.

22 posted on 09/26/2012 11:19:38 AM PDT by ThanhPhero (Khach hanh huong den La Vang)
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To: TexasFreeper2009

No kidding.

Not only are American stewardesses. . .ooops. . .”flight attendants” old and ugly, they are rude and nasty as well.


23 posted on 09/26/2012 11:21:32 AM PDT by Hulka
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To: BlueStateRightist

On United if either of two of the stewardi were in the aisle there was no getting past them. United is the only place where one must purchase individually wrapped peanuts- well no, but the service and niggardliness immediately suggest such lines.


24 posted on 09/26/2012 11:22:49 AM PDT by ThanhPhero (Khach hanh huong den La Vang)
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To: Dick Bachert

United staff resent passengers because they are the necessity for the staff to be able to go to neat places and wear snazzy uniforms. They would prefer to load the passengers on pallets with forklifts and it all shows in the cabin.


25 posted on 09/26/2012 11:25:58 AM PDT by ThanhPhero (Khach hanh huong den La Vang)
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To: BlueStateRightist

Are Asian airlines unionized?


26 posted on 09/26/2012 11:27:47 AM PDT by wayoverontheright
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To: BlueStateRightist

I used to work for a Japanese company. All of the Japanese people told me that Singapore Airlines is the best.


27 posted on 09/26/2012 11:28:52 AM PDT by forgotten man (forgotten man)
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To: forgotten man

In the best carrier, even in first class, the passenger is treated like poop. Passngers have devolved to subways stinkfest. What is it with fat, and I do mean FAT, passengers that feel their obesity is a licence for loud rudness. (not that thin rude people have any excuse)

Instead of trying to improve, we are stuck with air-hag and “what the hell do you want” service.

PS for an option $25 service fee you may sit in our smile section where the staff is guarnteed to smile at least TWICE!


28 posted on 09/26/2012 11:42:44 AM PDT by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: BlueStateRightist

I have flown practically every Asian airline and most American airlines and there is no comparison.

Asian airports are far superior to our also.

Ironically enough, I think it has to do with the fact that most Asian airlines are government owned, so there is a point of national pride in their airlines; also, the government bureaucrats who fly their airlines love the perks and supplication that they get from flying their own airlines, and there is no political correctness where you have to deal with the feminist and union lobbies who force the airlines to hire ugly and incompetent people against their will.

Over-all, I think it mostly has to do with national pride and Asian people are big on face and see airlines as an introduction to their culture whereas the corporate hacks who own our airlines only care about the bottom line and the unions have no pride in serving their customers.


29 posted on 09/26/2012 11:52:24 AM PDT by radpolis (Liberals: You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy)
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To: stephenjohnbanker
The cute gals don’t hurt, but the service is 10 times better than ours. Malaysia Airlines is top notch.

This is true for most better ship cruise lines as well. Most of their wait staffs are brought in from Europe (many from eastern Europe). These are, IMHO, people who understand that their job IS to provide a service to their customers (diners). Furthermore, they don't think it beneath themselves to do this, and are willing to work much harder than a comparable US waiter.

30 posted on 09/26/2012 11:54:08 AM PDT by Lou L (Health "insurance" is NOT the same as health "care")
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To: BlueStateRightist

During a segment of the CNBC documentary “A day in the life of American Airlines” they spoke with a women who was the head of their flight attendants union(or something). Behind her, on the wall of her office, was a big National Organization for Women poster...largely an organization/movement that was “hijacked” by the feminazi/LGBT movement years ago. Perhaps that speaks volumes to the attitudes/lifestyles of many(not all)who currently make up that occupation, particularly on U.S. carriers.


31 posted on 09/26/2012 12:04:37 PM PDT by RckyRaCoCo (I prefer liberty with danger to peace with slavery, IXNAY THE TSA!)
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To: BlueStateRightist
I haven't seen a 'flight attendant' (what we used to call 'stewardesses') under age 49 on an American air carrier since about 1989.

They're even fatter than the aisle cart, mostly. I hate the aisle seats on airplanes, when every time that drink/food cart goes by I have Mabel or Shan'NayNay's giant fat ass bashing into my elbow and I have to sit with my arms locked foward like I'm diving into a pool until she finally gets by.

You fly on Dutch KLM to Europe, and the Euro girls are just hotter than hell. You fly back FROM Europe to the United States on an American carrier, and there's big old Luwanda there to grimace at you as you board the plane.

Flying coach on an American carrier sucks and will never get better, only worse. I'm sure Obama will bail them out by printing up trillions pretty soon.

The only solution is to fly first class anywhere, preferably on a non-American carrier. Even first class on an American carrier still kinda sucks.

32 posted on 09/26/2012 12:09:17 PM PDT by The KG9 Kid (Semper Fi)
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To: BlueStateRightist

The widespread policy of charging for checked bags means that customers try to bring everything short of steamer trunks for carry on. This results in delays at TSA security and in getting the passengers loaded. Now some airlines are charging for carry on bags. All these fees and the flight is little better than traveling in a cattle car.


33 posted on 09/26/2012 12:15:56 PM PDT by The Great RJ
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To: The KG9 Kid

Even if there is a hot us airline stewardess, you wonder how she can do her job with that broomstick shoved up her....


34 posted on 09/26/2012 12:18:11 PM PDT by longtermmemmory (VOTE! http://www.senate.gov and http://www.house.gov)
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To: BlueStateRightist
The decline of American carriers mirrors the decline of our nation.

The decline is in direct inverse to the rise of our incomprehensible laws and regulations, massive law suites, convoluted unions structure and contracts not to forget the crony political kickbacks.

So if one huge sector of the economy is down the other small one is up,up ,up.

35 posted on 09/26/2012 12:49:32 PM PDT by fella ("As it was before Noah, so shall it be again")
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To: TexasFreeper2009
My daughter was recently flown to Atlanta for an interview with Delta. She had high hopes. Young. Beautiful. Sweet and kind. Speaks three languages (English, Japanese and Spanish). Certified in CPR, great with kids and a recent college grad gainfully employed as a social worker.

She said one of the interviewers openly admitted that they favored gay men. Competition was really tough in a crappy economy. A ton of the candidates were there from other airlines. She came home with some hope because about two thirds of the candidates were given their "sorry" excuse at the interview. She got hers by way of a phone call a week later.

During the 14 years I lived in Japan, I worked with a lot of former airline attendants in a business setting. They don't look at it as a lifelong career over there. They look at it as a great place to work and travel until (a)they get married in their late 20's or early 30's or (b)a steppingstone into business where the skills they learned are highly marketable to businesses losing other women in that age group to their child bearing years.

36 posted on 09/26/2012 1:10:42 PM PDT by Vigilanteman (Obama: Fake black man. Fake Messiah. Fake American. How many fakes can you fit in one Zer0?)
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To: Dick Bachert

“A friend is was a 777 pilot for United. He left United and went with KAL. He said the difference is like night and day. United treated its employees the same way it treats its customers: Like cattle.”

In any service business, the way a company treats their employees is directly reflected in how the employees treat their customers. I actually feel sorry for United employees as you can tell that they are treated like utter crap by management. The same for Home Depot, which is even worse. Still. I won’t even go in a Home Depot any more things are so bad there.


37 posted on 09/26/2012 1:24:12 PM PDT by catnipman (Cat Nipman: Vote Republican in 2012 and only be called racist one more time!)
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To: Hogblog
"When the asian airlines are unionized they will look like ours in 10 years."

that statement brings to mind my favorite line from the movie "Hangover." . . . "Uh . . . That ain't Gonna Happen"

Asia has a whole different concept of "union" and work rules. Starting with the idea of age, weight and appearance restrictions.

Regarding "lady boys" as they are referred to here in Thailand and most parts of Southeast Asia . . . . the numbers here in the cabin make United Airlines and the United States look like a "straight only" club.

38 posted on 09/26/2012 1:32:53 PM PDT by saywhatagain
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To: BlueStateRightist
I flew United about this past spring. Meal service was going on and I was passed over. The two other people who shared my row were served but not me. As I was on the aisle, I watched the flight attendant, a big gal in her middle 50s, rummage around in the cart expecting I would be served, either by her or the attendant coming up behind.

That didn't happen.

I said, "Excuse me. I didn't receive a meal."

The flight attendant's eyes went wide, real wide, like she was about to pounce. She said, "That's because you didn't . . . ." She got a hold of herself and simply apologized and handed me my crummy meal.

So ready to blame the customer. So ready to fight.

39 posted on 09/26/2012 2:13:08 PM PDT by Oratam
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To: Oratam

What keeps US carriers in the international pax hauling business is our safety record (thanks to our pilots, training departments, and maintenance personnel). Period.

(Retired UAL 767 Captain)


40 posted on 09/26/2012 2:42:34 PM PDT by QBFimi (When gunpowder speaks, beasts listen.)
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