美国国家公共电台 NPR--Customers of Southwest question their loyalty after massive flight delays

Customers of Southwest question their loyalty¹ after massive flight delays

Transcript²

The botched response by Southwest Airlines to a major winter storm triggered a public relations disaster, and a potentially significant hit to the company's bottom line.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Life is so busy during the holiday season that it can be tough to keep up on the news. But people who have tickets to fly on Southwest may have time to hear this next story while they wait for the airline to work out cancellations and delays. NPR's Stacey Vanek Smith asked how a winter storm hit this airline more than others.

STACEY VANEK SMITH, BYLINE⁴: Hillary Chang (ph) has been a Southwest Airlines devotee for years. Chang is 29, and she and her boyfriend travel a lot.

HILLARY CHANG: I am, like, a very loyal Southwest customer. I have a Southwest credit card. We actually only fly Southwest.

VANEK SMITH: Chang and her boyfriend were booked on a Southwest flight on Christmas Day from Baltimore to LA with a connection in Houston. They arrived in Houston hours late, only to learn their flight to LA had been canceled. They were told to get their bags and try to rebook.

CHANG: We hurry to baggage claim, and it's just bags everywhere - probably over a thousand. It's like if you had Legos from a bucket and you were to dump them on the ground. That's what it looked like. So I'm not going to lie. I was in tears, crying.

VANEK SMITH: Southwest has canceled over 13,000 flights in the last few days - 10 times more than any other airline. Industry analyst⁵ Richard Aboulafia says it's not surprising airlines struggled, given the terrible storm, as well as the staffing shortages they've been experiencing. But he says he never expected Southwest to emerge as the cancellation³ king.

RICHARD ABOULAFIA: They've got the best reputation for customer service and management agility⁶. They're usually pretty good at responding to crises.

VANEK SMITH: So what went wrong? The problem seems to be twofold. First, Aboulafia says, most airlines are on a so-called hub-and-spoke system. They pool resources in certain cities and route most of their flights through there. It is less efficient day to day, but it can make it easier to pivot⁷ when things go wrong. Southwest uses a so-called point-to-point system, which is leaner and more efficient, but also means resources are more scattered⁸.

ABOULAFIA: Their route system rendered it uniquely vulnerable to a storm-precipitated meltdown.

VANEK SMITH: So did outdated⁹ technology. That is what the president of the Southwest Flight Attendants Union, Lyn Montgomery, told NPR.

LYN MONTGOMERY: The way that they have to notify their flight crews is a manual process. You actually have to talk to a crew scheduler.

VANEK SMITH: Longtime Southwest loyalist Hillary Chang says that system's meltdown was on full display at the Houston airport on Christmas.

CHANG: There were hundreds of people standing¹⁰ in line. It wrapped all the way around the building. There was, like, crying children and moms that are breastfeeding. And there are people who are elderly, like, really bundled up 'cause Houston just happened to be freezing on Christmas.

VANEK SMITH: Chang and her boyfriend quickly realized they would have to fend¹¹ for themselves. They rented a car and drove the 21 hours back to Los Angeles. Chang doesn't expect to get her suitcase back ever, which is really upsetting. Chang's boyfriend just proposed, and the ring is on her finger. But the ring box was in her suitcase, and she was hoping to save it as a keepsake. Chang says all of this has really shaken her years-long loyalty to Southwest.

CHANG: I'm open to dating a new airline.

VANEK SMITH: Social media is full of former Southwest loyalists saying they are done with the carrier. Meanwhile, Southwest's CEO released a statement saying they're working to understand what went so wrong and are, quote, "apologizing daily to staff and customers."

Stacey Vanek Smith, NPR News.

1 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 cancellation   

n.删除，取消

参考例句：

• Heavy seas can cause cancellation of ferry services.海上风浪太大，可能须要取消渡轮服务。
• Her cancellation of her trip to Paris upset our plan.她取消了巴黎之行打乱了我们的计划。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

6 agility   

n.敏捷，活泼

参考例句：

• The boy came upstairs with agility.那男孩敏捷地走上楼来。
• His intellect and mental agility have never been in doubt.他的才智和机敏从未受到怀疑。

7 pivot   

v.在枢轴上转动；装枢轴，枢轴；adj.枢轴的

参考例句：

• She is the central pivot of creation and represents the feminine aspect in all things.她是创造的中心枢轴，表现出万物的女性面貌。
• If a spring is present,the hand wheel will pivot on the spring.如果有弹簧，手轮的枢轴会装在弹簧上。

8 scattered   

adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的

参考例句：

• Gathering up his scattered papers,he pushed them into his case.他把散乱的文件收拾起来，塞进文件夹里。

9 outdated   

adj.旧式的，落伍的，过时的；v.使过时

参考例句：

• That list of addresses is outdated,many have changed.那个通讯录已经没用了，许多地址已经改了。
• Many of us conform to the outdated customs laid down by our forebears.我们许多人都遵循祖先立下的过时习俗。

10 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

11 fend   

v.照料（自己），（自己）谋生，挡开，避开

参考例句：

• I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。
• He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。