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Are planes leaving earlier to lift on-time ratings?

November 25, 2008

This holiday weekend, you might want to consider checking in extra early at the airport. There’s evidence some airlines, in an effort to boost their on-time ratings, are instructing their flight crews to push back a minute or two early — and leaving some passengers stranded at the gate.

So-called “leave-early” policies have been around for as long as the Transportation Department has published on-time statistics, as I pointed out about a decade ago.

What’s different now? I’ll have the answer in a moment. But first, let’s hear from Aletheia Lawry, who was on the wrong side of an early departure on a recent Delta Air Lines flight from Houston to Hartford.

We were late pulling into Atlanta — we were forced to circle the airport for about 15 minutes and then were on the tarmac another 10 minutes or so while they tried to find an open gate.

We exited the plane and ran to make our connection to Hartford. We arrived at the Hartford gate about eight minutes before scheduled departure. The plane had already left. We banged on the Jetway door, to no avail.

Indeed, Delta tells passengers that they must be at the gate 15 minutes before departure or they risk missing their flight. Some cities have longer lead times (45 minutes for St. Croix and St. Thomas) while others are shorter (shuttle flights in Boston, New York and Washington have just a five-minute requirement.)

Not that the rules are doing Delta any good. Roughly 84 percent of its flights were considered “on-time” in September, according to the Department of Transportation (PDF). That’s about average.

Lawry is amused by that.

It amazes me that even with dispatching flights early, Delta can have such a dismal on-time record.

I’m not asking for a return to the times when they would hold a plane for connecting passengers, but to leave us sitting in the Atlanta airport because they left prior to departure time seems unconscionable. Can they actually do this to passengers?

Well, yes.

In fact, with more Web sites displaying on-time statistics by flight, and with executive bonuses being tied to on-time records (US Airways, for example) the pressure is on to push back as early as possible.

Meaning that when it comes to air travel, early is the new late.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

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16 comments

  • Autonerd

    Had something similar happen to me with Delta… booked a ticket through them with a 40 minute connection time. Connecting flight was ten minutes late and another passenger and I were not allowed to board our plane, even though it was still at the gate. I missed my evening dinner and meeting. Now I never take a connection time under an hour and I never fly Delta unless I have no other choice. In fact, I’d guess that one missed connection has cost Delta at least $2,500 — subsequent trips where the travel department wanted me to fly Delta and I said no.

  • Joe Farrell

    The crazy thing is that the airlines KNOW when you are running late with their OWN connection. I can understand if a flight arrives at a connecting airport within 30 min of the scheduled departure – it will be hard for the bags and people to get from E15- A32 at ATL in that time frame. But if they know you are coming and know you have no luggage – also known by computer these days – why not wait until departure time?

    Even more so, if you are going from ATL – BDL [Hartford] – what does it matter if the inbound to BDL is 20 min late leaving even? The turns in Hartford have enough time to make up that late arrival [as in 30 minutes of schedule padding] and then another 1 hour at least on the ground in Hartford before the plane turns and goes back to ATL or even Cincinnati – that flight leaves the gate 14 min late to accommodate late connecting passengers, spends 20 min on the ground, it arrives at BDL 5 min late. Not a problem at BDL which never has arrival delays not the result of thunderstorms – the place barely closes long enough in winter to plow the runway.

    I’ll tell you one thing – the WORST flights for leaving early are the last ones – pilots are tired, ground staff, tired, everyone wants to go home and will kick that plane out just as fast as possible.

  • MJC

    Frankly, I AM asking them to go back to the time when they would hold a plane for connecting passengers. Not possible? Then provide free access to the Airline club during the layover, and a reasonable package for being left behind if you have to stay overnight.

    If I get to the airport late and miss my flight, that’s my fault. If you put me on two connecting flights that really do not connect (let’s face it, the airlines know which airports experience long holding patterns, long walks between gates, etc), then it’s your problem to fix.

  • Jim J

    Instead of Executive Bonuses being tied to on-time performances, how about bonuses being tied to overall customer satisfaction. I doubt that many people look at the FAA’s on-time performance statistics prior to purchasing a ticket. They may, however, remember how they were treated by an airline (or how their friends and relatives were treated) in the past and make that information an important part of their decision.

  • Jasper

    I am no lawyer (we established that), but leaving early is simple breach of contract IMHO. Quite frankly, the product I buy is transportation from A to B. The airline then puts a time schedule on that, which is fine with me. But I see it as their responsibility to get me from A to B, preferably roughly in the time *they put on the trip themselves*. Anything less is breach of contract. [Yes, I know that the world isn't that simple, but it should be].

    I wish the US airlines would impose the EU delay rules upon themselves (way better than gov’t intervention), but I will not be holding my breath.

    @ Jim J: Bonuses on customer satisfaction? They’d rig the questionnaires, and legally force you to fill out a positive one by means of a new rule in the contract you silently sign when buying a ticket.

    I’d like to see the bonus of CEOs be 1 on 1 related to bonuses they give out to *regular* personnel. Just make it that simple: Every dollar spent on a bonus for a ground crew member is one dollar for the CEO.

  • Joe Farrell

    Hey, Jasper = why worry about imposing EU delay rules on yourself when there appears to be ZERO chance of the gubmint ever forcing you to do it!

  • http://debsmouse.net Deb Smouse

    I have noticed most of my American has left early on the last few flights, but I assumed, hopefully, that all the folks were loaded and that we didn’t leave anyone behind…..

  • jaxon

    I almost missed a connetion at ATL because of this. I always book at least an hour between connecting flights, but then, invariably, my itinerary gets changed, and changed, and changed again by the airlines until my connection time has been whittled to 45 min or less. A month ago we were late taking off, then made it up, then lost it again as we rode around trying to get a gate, and of course, they changed my departing gate AGAIN by the time I got into the airport. We all know what ATL is like with those trams and huge, long gate promenades. I have never seen so many people literally on the run as I see in ATL. My home airport is O’Hare, and you seldom see it there.

    We were one of the runners that day — down the promenade, down the steps, to the tram, up the steps, run down the new gateway. We get there with 10 minutes to spare, and I ask if there was time for me to use the restroom — nope, we are closing the doors. Then we sat on the tarmac for 20 more minutes, not being allowed to use the restroom.

    I have an upcoming flight through ATL, and my hour has been whittled down, once again, to about 45 minutes. I agree with the poster who says they need to go back to waiting for their connecting passengers, or stop whittling down the connection times one has booked, or at the very least, do not close the doors until the time the plane is scheduled to leave.

  • Jennifer

    The airlines know exactly what they’re doing. I was on a Continental flight from LAS to EWR supposed to depart at 7:00 am. The pilot announced during boarding that he wanted to leave 15 minutes early because he said leaving 15 mins early would mean arriving at EWR 30 mins early but leaving on time would mean arriving 15 mins late. Again, leaving on time would mean getting to the gate at least 15 mins late. Why then don’t they simply state the correct arrival time?

  • http://cestbeth.com Beth

    US Airways’ policy now is that customers must be on board 15 minutes prior to departure. They are equally guilty in pushing back early and padding the flights so much to allow for the delays.

  • MrBadExample

    @Beth

    That’s only true if you’re dumb enough to fly the Trailer Park in the Sky aka US Airways.

  • http://seniortravel.about.com Nancy

    On his last business trip, my husband called me from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport…to tell me that the boarding agents were actually yelling at the passengers to get them to board in an “orderly” fashion. Now I know why.

  • ric

    have low expectations,do not argue with airline people in the airport and document any true loss or personal indignity.
    i have seen wheel chair persons told to sleep onsidewalk after an airline cancelled a flight,
    passengers put in broken seats,
    airline refusing to re-imburse for flights that were forced nack to ground when a cockpit window broke in flight.
    teenagers acting wild in first class and flight attendents doing nothing but delaying
    de-planning while local police chased them on the plane and ground.
    airlines are a business…if people accept bad behavior it will not change.

    I have found that kindness can often bring out the better nature in people
    that are not rewarded for being helpfull.

  • David

    Maybe flights are leaving early, but if you’re supposed to be checked in 2 or 3 hours before a flight, surely you can get through security and to your gate in plenty of time. I understand that some people can have delays that aren’t their fault, but surely everyone can be at the gate by 15 to 30 mins before boarding. Oh, I forgot, you decided at the last minute you wanted to check out the duty-free!

    If you don’t get to the gate until the last minute then you’re holding the plane up for the rest of us. If you don’t want to help yourself, why should we wait for you?

    If I had the choice of leaving early and making a connection, or leaving on time and having to rush, let’s go.

  • Jim

    This seems to be happening quite regularly. What David forgets are the people who are late for connections through no fault of their own.

    This appears to be a breach of contract, as one previous commenter has pointed out. And, yes, I am a lawyer. My girlfriend was delayed 90 minutes in Atlanta last night, although she was at the gate prior to the scheduled departure time. And forget the “present yourself 15 minutes prior to departure at the gate”–that is (a) just a way for the airline to get out of denied boarding compensation, and (b) irrelevant when the airline caused the person not to be able to make it to the gate. (At least there was another flight–I was stuck in Phoenix overnight at my own expense last year flying Trailer Park in the Sky)

    I have already filed a DOT complaint, and will be seeking Rule 250 compensation for involuntary denied boarding. After all, if they were able to leave early, it must have been because the plane was full, right?

  • Ronda

    i could understand airplanes leaving early and not giving people time to board due to late connection flights, but i think that the reasonable thing to do for those people who are left behind at no fault of they’re own is to provide meal vouchers and maybe a couple water bottles, hotel information, things to make they’re wait a bit more reasonable so that even tho they might not have the best start to they’re trip, at least they’re not completely angry. a little bit of costomer service can go a long way in these situations

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