[jimworcs]

The reason airline executives behave differently to the other industries is they are not operating in a competitive environment. The airline industry in the US has been carved up into a series of complex monopolies. The "majors" are allowed to merge and form huge "fortress hubs" which operate as regional monopolies. In addition, the international routes operate as part of bi lateral international agreements which protect the rights of the airlines. The domestic market in the US is protected from any foreign competition and the ownership rules relating to US carriers also protect them. As a result, they are not concerned with customer/passenger satisfaction, as the passenger often has very limited choices available. If you are a business customer in Atlanta for example, you will have no realistic choice but to use Delta.

To compound this problem, airlines like Delta have actually been allowed to emerge from bankruptcy with a stronger monopoly. They sustain this outrageous protection, by paying millions in "lobbying" or bribes as they are known to the rest of us.

This explains why airlines are impervious to the complaints of customers.