First of all, Consumers Union would like t o bot h t hank and 

commend Secret ary LaHood for doing so much t o st rengt hen

passenger right s. Coupled wit h t he init iat ive on t armac delays 

announced last December, t he DOT has done more t o provide 

assist ance t o consumers in t he last six mont hs t han it has in 

many, many years. As t he Secret ary st at ed when announcing 

t hese proposed rules in June: “Airline passengers have right s 

and should be able t o expect fair and reasonable t reat ment 

when t hey fly.”

The new proposed rules will great ly enhance t he passenger 

experience. But t hey also make clear t he DOT’s commit ment t o 

t he most import ant st akeholders of all—t he cust omers who 

support commercial aviat ion in t he Unit ed St at es.

Lat ely t here has been much t alk wit hin t he indust ry—and even 

wit hin t his commit t ee—t hat unhappy passengers should quot e 

“ vot e wit h t heir feet ” and select anot her airline. As if such a 

t hing were possible at 35,000 feet . The simple fact is t hat 

choosing an airline is not like choosing a t oot hpast e or a bigbox ret ail st ore, and t here are several key reasons:

• The nat ion’s aviat ion infrast ruct ure belongs t o it s cit izens, 

and t axpayer dollars—paid by t hose who fly as well as by t hose 

who do not fly—support t hat infrast ruct ure.

• In many market s, t here is no meaningful choice, eit her 

because t here is no compet it ion or because compet ing airlines 

are in lock-st ep on consumer issues. As indust ry consolidat ion 

increases, t his t rend increases as well.

• The airline indust ry’s federal preempt ion prevent s consumers 

from redressing grievances on t he st at e and local level, 

t hereby placing added emphasis on federal regulat ions. For 

example, t wo years ago t he New York St at e Legislat ure 

enact ed a Passenger Bill of Right s but t hose of us who are 
familiar wit h indust ry hist ory were not at all surprised t o see a 

federal court prompt ly st rike it down.

• The very nat ure of commercial air t ravel, and t he inherent 

regulat ions concerning safet y and securit y, invest s t remendous 

aut horit y in airline crewmembers and ot her employees, and 

t hereby provides t hem wit h t remendous responsibilit ies for 

passengers’ comfort and well-being as well.

As not ed, Consumers Union applauds Secret ary LaHood and 

t he DOT for doing so much so quickly t o assist passengers. But 

as awful as ext ended t armac delays are for t hose forced t o 

endure t hem, t here are ot her low-profile sit uat ions t hat occur 

every single day at airport s t hroughout t he count ry. Airline 

cont ract s of carriage are difficult t o int erpret and enforce and 

t hey can vary considerably from carrier t o carrier. When faced 

wit h a delayed or cancelled flight s, even t he savviest of 

passengers experience an “ informat ional vacuum” and are 

unsure how t o proceed.

That ’s why we’ve proposed t he DOT implement a Unified 

Passenger Bill of Right s. Here is a recap of t hat proposal:

• PROPOSAL: DOT SHOULD IMPLEMENT A UNIFIED PASSENGER 

BILL OF RIGHTS. Since 2005, t he European Union has enforced 

a single, st raight forward, comprehensive set of rules for 

passengers flying wit hin Europe (a summary is at t ached). 

These regulat ions have proved t o be quit e effect ive and can 

easily be int erpret ed by passengers and airlines alike; 

subsequent ly t hey have led t o an increase in cust omer 

sat isfact ion and clarit y for airlines. 

For years t he DOT has enforced a single set of st andards for 

mishandled baggage, a regulat ion t he DOT st rengt hened earlier 
t his mont h while also st rengt hening compensat ion for 

passengers involunt arily denied boarding. Now t he DOT needs 

t o implement clear and inclusive regulat ions on ot her key 

issues for all passengers flying wit hin t he U.S., including:

* t ransparency in airline pricing, including ancillary fees

* t ransparency in flight operat ions, such as codesharing 

and commut er operat ions

* compensat ion for lengt hy flight delays

* compensat ion for flight cancellat ions

Furt her, t he DOT needs t o st rengt hen it s Aviat ion Consumer 

Prot ect ion and Enforcement division by est ablishing an Airline 

Passenger Right s Ombudsman, who would be an int rinsic 

component in shaping DOT and FAA commercial aviat ion 

policies.