Two Canadian airlines are ranked below average in a new North American airline satisfaction study.
The study, released Wednesday by American global market research firm J.D. Power, ranked Air Canada second to last among five airlines included in the "traditional carrier ranking," while Alaska Airlines was ranked first.
WestJet, meanwhile, took the third spot among four airlines included in the "low-cost carrier ranking," which saw JetBlue Airways take the top spot.
Air Canada and WestJet were the only Canadian airlines included in the study, which also ranked American Airlines/US Airways, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines.
The study measured customer satisfaction based on a 1,000-point scale that comprised cost and fees, in-flight services, boarding/deplaning/baggage, flight crew, aircraft, check-in and reservation.
Air Canada scored 681 points, compared to the segment average of 703. WestJet scored 723 points, while the segment average was 775.
The study showed that customer satisfaction with the airline industry has reached a 10-year high.
The improvements are attributed to the lowering of fares, reducing the frequency of lost luggage, better on-time arrivals, enhancements to in-flight entertainment systems and a growing tolerance towards extra fees for luggage or extra leg-room.
"While the perception of the airline experience still has a lot of room for improvement, there is notable progress in terms of satisfaction among the highest-ranked airlines in the study due to their keen focus on meeting or exceeding passenger needs," Rick Garlick, global travel and hospitality practice lead at J.D. Power, said in a statement.
According to the study, in-flight entertainment service on flights is where there's most room for improvements.
In recent years, airlines have added more on-demand entertainment, seat-side power plugs and Wi-Fi on board to increase customer satisfaction.
