Who Owns the Passenger? How Mobile Devices are Changing the Aviation Travel Experience

According SITA that around 75% of air travelers carry smart phone, but in the same time some survey found that less than 5% of airplane passengers use electronic devices for services such as booking and checking in. (Wald, 2013). The majority of travelers use their phones to call a friend or a cab to pick them up from the airport, but they rarely make a hotel reservations or purchase airplane tickets through a cellphone application.

Airplane travelers in the near future will be allowed to use personal devices to watch videos, play games and read, this is a small benefit for the travelers resulted from the new rules of FAA. The recent rules of FAA allow travelers to use devices in a certain altitude which is below 10,000 feet, during the differences in the recent rules, the travelers will be allowed to use their devices from gate to gate. According to the FAA, air passengers are to be allowed to use their personal devices within the flight span. However, the newly adopted policies will still enforce few restrictions on electronics use. Delta Airlines announced that they will continue with their old policy, which is above 10,000 feet. (Hanna, & Hetter, 2013)

The new policy system of the FAA will provide the passenger with more convenience and therefore passengers should start taking further advantages of technology, other than making phone calls and playing games. Today’s technology allows people to make nearly any transaction with a little tab on the screen. Thus, needs such as hotel reservations and finding the proper transportation should be done through the mobile application which can usually save plenty of time and money. (Federal Aviation Administration, 2013)

The president of the Association of Flight Attendants, Veda Shook, said the change was “welcome news.” “We’re not going to run away from technology,” she said, “but we’re not going to run away from safety, either.”

Veda Shook, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants stated that changes will be made on the protocol of flight passenger management.  The flight attendants will no longer be in charge of ensuring that passengers turn off all electrical devices as the plane descended, though they would still enforce passenger storage rules.  They would ensure that all carry-on items would be stored under the seat, in an overhead bin or what will fit into the pocket on the back of the seat.

I believe, that some restrictions should be present to enhance the public safety, however, the new rules of the FAA will provide significant benefits from the connivance given to passengers boarding commercial aircrafts  

 

Hanna, J., & Hetter, K. (2013, October 31). FAA allowing most electronic device use throughout flights. CNN Travel. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/31/travel/faa-portable-electronic-devices/

Greco, K. (2013, October 31). FAA to Allow Airlines to Expand Use of Personal Electronics. Federal Aviation Administration. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.faa.gov/news/press_releases/news_story.cfm?newsId=15254

Wald, M. (2013, October 31). F.A.A. Moves to Ease Electronics Ban, Opening the Runways to Angry Birds. The New York Times. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/01/business/passengers-to-be-free-to-use-electronics-on-flights-faa-says.html?_r=0

Bellamy, W. (2013, October 3). Mobile Airline Services Need Improvements, Poll Says Retrieved from http://www.aviationtoday.com/av/in-flight-connectivity/airlines/Mobile-Airline-Services-Need-Improvements-Poll-Says_80346.html#.UovH. Avionics Today. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.aviationtoday.com/av/in-flight-connectivity/airlines/Mobile-Airline-Services-Need-Improvements-Poll-Says_80346.html#.UovH_qMo6Ul

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Merger of American Airlines and US Airways

The Merger of American Airlines and US Airways

            February 13 2013 American Airlines and US Airways announced planning to merge a deal that would create the world's largest airline. The big question is will this merger beneficial the consumers. I believe that larger airline can provide better services to their customers, but do the consumers care about the benefits more than tickets prices because I believe in the future that merger will decrease the competition between the airlines and raise ticket prices (New York, 2013).

I believe this merger will affect the consumer by reducing choice on many routes is rarely advantageous from a passenger perspective. They argue that reduced competition lead to less choice and higher prices, in my opinion decreasing the competition between the airlines is not a great fact because consumers have to face higher tickets prices and poor services. Once there’s no competition the airlines will have the power to do whatever they want and the consumer left without choice.

Another concern in this merger is the pilots for both airlines, the list of seniority. Each company has different requirements to hire their pilots, also; each airline has pilot seniority list. The list of seniority is important because will agree who will fly this type of aircraft, how much money will make. I believe the pilot seniority would be a huge problem for the merger because each airline has two different rules for pilot seniority and would get to messy when the merger happen (Jones, 2013).

The last step for merging between both airlines is to get approved by the Justice Department’s antitrust division. The reason of the Justice Department’s antitrust division is to let the American consumers have the right to expect the benefits of free and open competition, the best goods and services at the lowest prices. The Justice Department antitrust division is an important part of the process because of their ability to stop companies from exploiting the market (Department of Justice, 2005). The prediction of the major airlines controlling 70% of domestic flight operations of the U.S. will affect me as management because there will be a lot of works when both airlines combine together, so I believe it will very hard to deal with the differences between the airlines standards.  

 

Jones, D. (2013). Pilot seniority a hot issue at merging airlines. Retrieved from http://fapa.aero/content.asp?ID=69&Gateway=Industry

New York Times. (2013). American Airlines bulks up. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/15/opinion/american-airlines-bulks-up.html

Halsey, A. (2013, February 13). American airlines approves merger with us airways. Retrieved from http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2013-02-13/local/37077686_1_airline-consolidation-southwest-airlines-mit-international-center

Department of Justice. (2005). Antitrust for airlines. Retrieved February 16, 2013, from, http://.www.justice.gov/atr/public/speeches/217987

Lovitt, R. (n.d.). What does A US Airways-American airlines merger do for passengers. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/travel/what-does-us-airways-american-airlines-merger-do-passengers-734087

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Professionalism

Professionalism

            The definition of Professionalism in the aviation industry is any worker who is taking responsibility for any action coming along from the guy who stands in the gate to the last persons who will touch the airplane before flying, and who they will act in demanding and risky situation. It is very important to act professional in aviation industry because it is one of most dangerous job maybe within one mistake a lot of people will lose their lives, so to act as a professional  person, a person should leave all job-unrelated problems and focus on the job duties once taking the shift over.

            The first trait of being professional is to learn from previous mistakes. I believe that no one purposely do mistakes, but if it happened the person has to learn from his or her previous mistakes and make sure that same mistakes not to be repeated, also; they have to work on preventing fellow employees not to fall in the same mistake that they experienced. Helping co- workers is one of professional’s traits.  I think helping the new co workers to get to know the new procedures or teaching them what they are missing is one of professional factor. Another trait to act as professional is to follow the procedures.  The person who wishes to become a professional has to follow the procedures for the company , I believe following the procedures for the manufacturer  is one of the most prior responsibilities for any employee especially in the aviation industry because by doing so, the employee will avoid any personal or aircraft damages.

            One example of lacked professionalism is the Colgan Air flight 3407 in 2009 when crashed into a house into New York City and killing 50 people. The NTSB investigation reported that the accident happened because the pilot didn’t respond to the warning because the fatigue. A lot of accidents happen because the pilot fatigue and this is totally not a professional thing

            Several factors have significantly contributed to my success as student entering and seeking a profession in Aviation Management. My priority was to become a professional in my career. Factors such as having positive attitude along with high self-confidence, and being a good listener, are essentials to my approached success. Having a positive attitude and being very optimistic that everything is achievable as long as the proper time and effort are being spend efficiently; have made me capable of handling and managing time and conflict which is a significant part of my pursed profession. Paying attention to what has being taught and listening to experienced instructors and professionals helped me learn easier, also; in my opinion listening to professionals contributed in gathering very valuable information from people who have being exposed to the particular professional environment.

            Throughout my career I would like to continue learning from the experts such as enrolling in an internship programs and attending professional seminars and conferences. I will keep learning skills that help me preventing and dealing with problems and conflict that I may face in my professional life.  

 

Johnson, B., & Smith, S. (2011, December 21). Professionalism: A ‘Must Have’ For All Aviation Workers. Aviation Pros. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.aviationpros.com/article/10456996/ramp-workers-must-be-professionals-to-ensure-safety.

Frisinger, S. L. The Leadership Truth behind the Accident.  Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://www.cornerstonestrategiesllc.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/Colgan-Air-White-Paper-from-CornerStone-Strategies-LLC-0110.pdf.

Denham, T. (2010, September 24). The 10 Most Important Personality Traits for Career Success. Times Union. Retrieved November 5, 2013, from http://blog.times union.com/careers/the-10-most-important-personality-traits-for-career-success/633/