GateHold

Now in ASK THE PILOT:

The Decline and Fall of the U.S. Airport. Our airports are terrible, and our airlines are finding it harder to compete. We’ve done it to ourselves through shortsightedness, underfunding, and flyer-unfriendly policies.

The other day I flew on Cathay Pacific from Bangkok to Amsterdam via Hong Kong. The connection process in HKG went like this: I stepped off the plane from Bangkok into a quiet, spacious, immaculately clean concourse, and walked to my connecting gate about six minutes away. A short while later I walked onto my flight to Amsterdam.

That’s it. Compare this, if you dare, to the process of making an international connection in the United States of America. Imagine you’re a foreign traveler arriving in the U.S. from Europe or Asia, with an onward connection either domestically or to a third country:

You step off the plane and make your way to the immigration hall, which as always is packed to capacity. After standing in line for more than an hour, you’re photographed and fingerprinted before finally being released into the baggage claim and customs hall. (Or maybe it takes even longer: after docking at the gate, airline station personnel inform you that due to extremely long lines at immigration, all passengers are being asked to remain aboard the aircraft for the time being.)

Your next task is to stand at the baggage carousel for twenty minutes and wait for your suitcase. American airports do not recognize the “in transit” concept, meaning that all passengers arriving from overseas, even if they’re merely transiting to a third country, are forced to claim and re-check their luggage. Once you’ve got your bag, another long line awaits you at the Customs checkpoint, followed by yet another long line at the luggage re-check counter. Finally you’re released into the terminal. Of course, this building is used for “international arrivals only” — another of those peculiarly American airport concepts — and your connecting flight is leaving from a totally different terminal on the other side of the airport. To get there, you walk outside and spend fifteen minutes in the rain waiting for a bus. And we haven’t even gotten to the worst part yet: once you’ve reached the correct terminal, it’s time for your security screening. The line at TSA is a good twenty minutes long, maybe more.

At long last you’re in the departure concourse, which is dirty, overcrowded and loud. Babies cry, CNN news monitors blare, and waves of public address announcements — most of them pointless and half of them unintelligible — wash over one another. How long did all of that take? Close to two hours one some days. Welcome to the American airport.

Two years ago in a CNN poll of 1,200 overseas business travelers who have visited the United States, a full twenty percent said they would not visit the United States again due to onerous entry procedures at airports, including long processing lines. Forty-three percent said they would discourage others from visiting the United States. Separately, U.S. Chamber of Commerce counsel Carol Hallett stated that “the United States risks falling behind Asia, the Middle East, and Europe as the global aviation leader.”

I’d say that battle was lost a long time ago.


For the full story and photos, see here...

http://www.askthepilot.com/the-decline-and-fall/


Enjoy,

PS

florin

Well written piece. I couldn't help thinking of the many domestic connections I've missed when landing in the US, or various other "fun" experiences.

At CVG, when you arrive from on an int'l flight (CDG is the only such flight into CVG), you go through the immigration and customs dance (though with one 1 plan arriving from abroad, it's a breeze) and then you go through security (shoes off et all) before you can exit the airport.

Flying MEX-JFK-CDG on DL->AF was an interesting experience. The worse part was that I was specifically told that I would not have to pick up my bag and go through customs. I knew the deal so I picked up the bag and then AF had no clue what to do with it; in their computer it appeared to be already loaded on the AF flight.

I agree with you - US airports are really sub-par (the fuggly carpeting that looks like vomit, lacking facilities like kid's areas or places to lay down and sleep) and nobody in the US seems to care. Most pax in the US are domestic, and domestic US flights are a miserable experience in itself; the airport doesn't have to compound the misery. The US is really the armpit when it comes to airports.

alanR

Anyone flying international-international would be foolish to fly via ANY US airport if they have to change planes.

I certainly have changed holiday plans to avoid the need to do so even if it costs more

JDiver

Been through Australia lately? Same dance, with international and domestic terminals across the airfield in places like Syndey - Kingsford Smith. Two hours between domestic and international if you're lucky.

JerryFF

Why should airports be any different than the rest of our infrastructure? Or any better than domestic airlines? Are train stations or train service any better? But just remember, so many people talk about "American Excellence" and how this is the "Best Country in the World". Just don't try to go anywhere expecting either of those slogans to apply.

84fiero

And there are many others worldwide, where it's either separate terminals or at least the need to re-clear security when transferring to a domestic flight or international-to-international. While it isn't ideal at all, it's hardly a "peculiarly American airport concept".

jpdx

It's a little perplexing that the author mentions Hong Kong as the glowing example of un-American airport user friendliness, considering that HKIA requires a security screening when transferring flights. Sure, the screening is usually quick, and the staff are less hostile than TSA, but still, this is an odd omission.

joejones

Having to re-clear security when connecting from an international flight is a universal rule, as far as I have seen. Most countries don't force you through customs and immigration, though.

alanR

Are there any other countries that do that on international-international flights?

1kBill

China makes you go through immigration when connecting Int'l-Int'l. It's usually a special line, but not always. Sometimes customs, especially at PVG if you are changing terminals.

tilt

The UK does. When travelling from, say, India to Canada on BA, LHR is the transit point. We go through immigration and then through security again. The security is the common one used by both transiting passengers and passengers originating from LHR. Makes for long lines. and after all that, you walk all the way back to the same terminal that you got off at.

Cheers

alanR

That's news to Heathrow Airport

glennaa11

I've done I-I transfers at PEK but never had to go through customs. You do go through an immigration line and then (practically) a strip search and have to remove every electronic device of any sort from your bag and place it in a separate bin. I swore off PEK after my last experience there even though it would be a shorter connection it's not worth the hassle.

And, indeed, you do go through transfer security at HKIA. Not sure how the author managed to do that and get to his gate in 6 minutes. It's a gigantic airport with some pretty long walks.

CDTraveler

If you think 2 hours is enough transit time, don't fly through ATL. Took more than 3, close to 4, last time.

However, long lines are not unique to the U.S. Ever arrived at BRU mid morning, when you're on about the 6th international flight to arrive? And let's not talk about Rome...

tilt

Step 1 in the page you linked to goes straight to the Immigration counters. Step 4 is the security check. At least that's was what it was a year ago when I travelled through LHR.

Cheers