Deregulation continued
More thoughts on the problems of
deregulation
Friday as I tried to get to Chicago by plane and
my one flight was cancelled, I had the opportunity to talk with one of the
airline employees about the reason deregulation is a
failure.
As the worker explained to me
what had happened today was not so unusual anymore. While he could not say it
many airlines routinely cancel flights because they aren't full and they can't
make money. They always tell us that its either weather or mechanical, but I
don't think that's quite true.
Why is
deregulation a failure? Running an airline is an expensive business. The cost of
equipment and fuel are substantial as are the cost of staff required just to
move you from one place to another. From pilots to flight attendants to baggage
handlers to gate agents and ticket agents, these folks all try hard to get you
to your destination. When transportation was regulated the airlines were
guarenteed a certain level of profit and fixed prices that they could charge.
The argument for deregulation was that if airlines could compete then consumers
would win. It is true that ticket prices are lower but what is the real cost.
Thousands of workers have lost good paying jobs, pensions have been cut or
discontinued. Flights are overcrowded and routinely cancelled. One result of
deregulation that I had never considered but the worker told me was that because
airlines are using smaller aircraft more and more it has caused increased
congestion at the airports which has led to more and longer delays. We have all
heard about the aging of the air traffic control system, now there is even more
strain on the system because of more flights due to smaller aircraft. During the
regulated days and now airlines all contributed to the air traffic control
system. Then they had the money to make sure that the system was state of the
art, since deregulation the system has not seen a major change or improvement in
years.
So what have we accomplished?
Not much good. Lost jobs, a badly outdated air traffic control system, old
aircraft that suffer constant mechanical problems that cause delays and
cancellations. For what, tickets are a little cheaper. But I would gladly pay
more to know I was going to arrive safe and on time. Its time we thought about
bringing regulation back to the airlines. This is one place where the free
market has failed the customers, the workers and the shareholders.
Posted: Fri - July 22, 2005 at 04:45 PM