Boeing has had a horror run of quality issues this year, with planes catching fire mid-air, tires falling off and even doors falling off.
And the Boeing crisis is hitting the wider aviation industry, with a survey showing growing distrust among flyers as they become increasingly worried about safety – meaning they may opt for other forms of travel in the future.
Only 69 per cent of Americans now believe flying is safer than other forms of long-distance travel, according to a new survey of US consumers conducted by The Harris Poll in February. That’s down from near-universal agreement that air travel was the safest way to travel long distances in the past.
The good news is that most people still have faith in airlines to get them to their destination safely.
Some 86 per cent of those surveyed said they still trust airlines to keep passengers safe while flying, and 73 per cent said they trust airlines to thoroughly inspect their planes before flying.
Three-quarters of US adults said they were at least somewhat aware of a major plane safety incident that has occurred lately, and two-thirds said news reports about such incidents make them more concerned about the safety of air travel.
However, the recent run of bad news about frightening incidents on planes is still having an impact on passenger behaviour.
Some 48 per cent of those surveyed said they are somewhat or much more likely to pay attention to safety briefings (safety cards, emergency procedures) on a flight they are about to take, 47 per cent said they are more likely to keep their seatbelts fastened when not required, and 45 per cent said they are much more likely to pay attention to what’s going on around them before a plane takes off.
Just last week, a Boeing plane flying to New Zealand suddenly plunged when a faulty seat pushed a pilot into the controls, throwing passengers into the ceiling, before the plane fortunately recovered, injuring more than 50 people.
The survey also found between 30 and 40 per cent of those surveyed said they were somewhat or much more likely to consider their choice of seat on a plane, which airline they book with and the type of plane they fly on.
Boeing’s reputation takes a hit
Amid the public questioning of Boeing, polling firm Morning Consult conducted a survey to gauge how the public’s trust in the company has changed.
It found that between the end of last year and February 28, there had been a 14-point drop in respondents’ net trust in Boeing. Net trust is the percentage of respondents who trust a brand or institution minus those who distrust it.
The biggest swing was among business travellers, who showed a drop of 26 points between the two surveys – representing a large fall in trust.
According to Morning Consult, this is partly because business travellers have traditionally had higher trust in Boeing than other groups, meaning there was more room to fall.
Aside from the reputational damage being done to the company among flyers, the US Federal Aviation Administration’s grounding of Boeing jets has led to fewer planes being delivered. That has led to capacity shortfalls at many airlines, further hitting their financial performance and share prices.
One of Boeing’s biggest customers, Southwest Airlines, has said it plans to cut flights this year, freeze most hiring and reassess its capital and spending plans in response to the uncertainty.
United Airlines has reportedly told Boeing to stop building its 737 Max 10 aircraft, and is considering switching some of its 277 outstanding 737 Max 10 orders to Boeing rival Airbus’s A321 until Boeing can get the long-delayed jet certified.
Airbus chief executive Guillaume Faury said on Tuesday he took no pleasure in the technical problems afflicting US rival Boeing because they hurt the image of the whole aviation industry, which needed to put quality and safety first.
Adding to Boeing’s woes, the US Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, said Boeing has a real quality control problem.
