Some members of Congress raised the specter of increased regulation of airlines to address the issues, if airlines can't fix the problems on their own.
Rep. Bill Shuster, R-Pa. in his written opening statement at a Congressional hearing Tuesday said "something is clearly broken when we see passengers being treated the way some of them have been treated on recent flights," citing the now infamous incident when a United Airlines passenger was dragged off a plane and an American Airlines passenger who was struck by her stroller that was yanked away by a flight attendant.
“It’s just common decency and common sense that you don’t treat a person that way, let alone a paying customer,” Shuster said.
He said he does not believe in “over-burdening our businesses with regulation.” But he said “Congress will not hesitate to act, whenever necessary, to ensure your customers are treated with the respect they deserve.”
Bill McGee, who testified at the hearing as an aviation consultant with Consumers Union, said the Consumers Union has never recommended re-regulation of the airline industry.
But, “it’s clear that when you leave customer service up to the airlines on many issues over the years — tarmac delays and other things — they do not do what’s best for their…. customers.”
Read more about the Congressional hearing on airline customer service on MyAJC.com.
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