CHAPTER 01

INTRODUCTION

Indian aviation sector is renowned as fifth fastest rising aviation market in the world
(Hindustan Times). Moreover, it will be third largest market in passenger movement through
overtaking UK by 2024, and largest by 2030.The commercial airline sub-segment has seen
significant improvements in services and passenger carrying from FY 2017 to FY 2018. The
year 2017-18 saw the airline industry carried 123.23 million domestic passengers (growth
rate10.76% CAGR) and 60.58 million international passengers (growth rate 8.32% CAGR).

In India there is significant growth opportunities for the airline operators as economy growing
at tremendous growth rate, and time is more valuable for all in snug schedule of daily life.
Stiff competition and decreasing profits forced the airlines to think over improving the service
quality. Because customers are very sensitive towards their needs and often there is a chance
to shift to opponents that offers the better services. There are limited studies are conducted on
airline perceived service quality and passenger satisfaction in Indian context. In the context of
Indian aviation industry perceived service quality and passenger satisfaction became a burning
research topic. The service sector is acknowledged as the tertiary sector of the economy which
involves transport, hospitality and tourism, banking, airlines etc. In service industry transaction
of product from production unit to the consumer is very difficult due to its intangible nature.
With this view the airlines industry is also treated as a service-oriented business, in which the
product is transferred to consumer during the travel in the form of total experience and
satisfaction. Due to its cyclic nature, it is very difficult to accomplish by any air service
provider. In the service industry to maximize profits and keep going is very difficult task for
the service suppliers. That is the main reason which makes Indian aviation industry
tremendously unattractive. To overcome from this problem most business executives gave
more emphasis on service quality as a greater concern than product quality. Which is greatly
followed by the airline operators.

High quality service directly influenced the competitiveness of an organization and it will help

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in retaining their customers and sustained market share. It is very important for any airlines to
now the expectations of their passengers about their services, and delivery of high service
quality is essential to survive. Service quality and passenger satisfaction is the excellent asset
for any airline carrier in today’s uncertain settings, if the passengers are not satisfied with the
on-board experience there is more chances to shift to other airlines and obligate to rethink over
their purchasing decision. The research on service quality and customer satisfaction is the need
of time in airline business, because it will play a crucial role in profit maximizing and to
sustain in the business in airlines industry.

Nowadays, airline business is getting more competitive and very difficult to cater the needs of
passengers in all aspects. Especially in service-oriented industries managers were realized
that to win customers faith, they have adopted new strategies to approaching more and more
customers. Therefore, customer loyalty is main aspect in every business setting. There is a huge
amount research studies carried out to examining the airlines service quality effect on
passenger satisfaction.

These studies are, for example in Taiwan, in Uganda, in Thailand in China and none of such
studies has been carried out in India on Economy Airlines which is motivated the authors to
research on airline perceived service quality and passenger satisfaction. The study has
identified the major attributes of perceived service quality in airline business and will help the
business managers to improve airline service quality through which they can able to retain
their customers. To fulfil the research objectives, firstly authors reviewed the related available
literature and finalize the service quality attributes. The rest part of the paper divided into four
folds: the first fold highlights about the research area background, second fold discusses about
the research methodology and objective wise analysis and fold three depicts the conclusion
and recommendation of the analysis.

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 CHAPTER 02

SUBJECT

2.1 : Marketing

Marketing refers to activities a company undertakes to promote the buying or selling of a

product or service. Marketing includes advertising, selling, and delivering products to
consumers or other businesses. Some marketing is done by affiliates on behalf of a company.
Professionals who work in a corporation's marketing and promotion departments seek to get
the attention of key potential audiences through advertising. Promotions are targeted to
certain audiences and may involve celebrity endorsements, catchy phrases or slogans,
memorable packaging or graphic designs and overall media exposure.

2.2 : Services and service quality

The cause of success of any service industry acknowledged by is the way of service provided
to the customers itself. What Is a Service? It is very difficult to define services because of
their diver’s nature. While a service provider delivered a service to a consumer is often hard to
understand due to intangible outputs and inputs. But there are two approaches are used by in
his book named “Principles of service marketing and management” (I) “A service is an act or
performance offered by one party to another. Although the process may be tied to a physical
product, the performance is essentially intangible and does not normally result in ownership
of any of the factors of production.” (II) “Services are economic activities that create value
and provide benefits for customers at specific times and places, as a result of bringing about a
desired change in or on behalf of the recipient of the service.” They provided a common
definition to services as "something that may be bought and sold, but which cannot be dropped
on your foot." Services are classified in the form of core services and the supplementary
services. In service industries it is very difficult task to evaluate the service quality of the
performance used during the delivery of the service. Service quality is among the most
important dimension in the service industry to know. There is an extensive literature available
to understand the service quality dimensions and there was too much researchers took
initiative to know the service quality paradigms. Service quality is a total experience that can

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only be evaluated by the customers. In terms service quality is the way through which a
customer meets and exceeds their expectations

2.3 : Customer Satisfaction

An extensive literature has available on customer satisfaction. It is very important to

understand the customer satisfaction for every service industry to survive in stiff competition.
To understand the importance of customer satisfaction with the service quality too much
initiatives have been done by the researchers since liberalization. They used satisfaction as
self-actualization response and admitted that fulfillment is the final consumption goal which
comprises the basic impetuses of thrust, hunger then safety. These goals can be changed as
per the time obligation in several ways. In his study clarified that when “customer’s
perceived experience either matches or exceeds the customer’s expectations resulting
customer satisfaction”. However, when the perceived experience of a consumer exceeds to the
“excellent” level (leading to repeat business) occurs customer’s loyalty. Gratification
response is an evaluation of a consumer towards a product and service perception, likewise
product or service that one, delivered (or delivering) a satisfying experience to the user. It is a
debate on “overall customer attitude towards a service provider”. Rectified that satisfaction is
an emotional reaction towards the customer’s anticipation and perceptions. However,
satisfaction is more comprehensive due to impreciseness of service quality, price, and quality
of product and personal factors as well as some conditional factors. On the basis previous
studies and concepts derived by the various scholars the study squeezed that customer
satisfaction is the result of excellent service attributes.

2.4: Customer behavior

Consumer behaviour is the study of how individual customers, groups or organizations select,
buy, use, and dispose ideas, goods, and services to satisfy their needs and wants. It refers to
the actions of the consumers in the marketplace and the underlying motives for those actions.
Marketers expect that by understanding what causes the consumers to buy particular goods
and services, they will be able to determine which products are needed in the marketplace,
which are obsolete, and how best to present the goods to the consumers.

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 CHAPTER 03

INDUSTRY PROFILE

3.1 : History of Economy Airlines

Low-cost airlines offer air travel at normally very low rates by cutting down on expensive
customary in-flight passenger services. They are also referred to as no-frills airlines or
budget carriers. Low-cost Carriers (Economy airlines) get this tag primarily due to their low
operating cost structure. However, irrespective of their cost structure, budget airlines are
today recognised because of their low-ticket fares and limited services.

The idea of LCC originated in the US. Founded in Dallas Texas on June 18, 1971 by Herb
Kelleher, Southwest Airlines offered tickets that worked out to be cheaper than a car or
coach ride. It is the fourth largest US airline in terms of domestic customers carried
annually. It has been profitable every year since 1973.Budget airlines have been
enthusiastically accepted by the Indian passengers. Generically, few things on their agenda
are: fleet expansion, increased connectivity and low fares.The business model of an LCC
broadly includes the following features: a single passenger class; a single type of aircraft for
lesser maintenance and servicing costs; flying to cheaper, less congested secondary airports;
flying early in the morning or late in the evening to avoid air traffic delays and take
advantage of lower landing fees; short flights and fast turnaround times; emphasis on direct
sales of tickets, especially over the Internet, hence avoiding agent commissions; employees
working in multiple roles; optional paid-for in-flight food and drink; aggressive fuel hedging
programmes; and segregation of ancillary charges.

Air Deccan

Captain Gopinath, the founder of Air Deccan, is the pioneer of budget airlines in India. He
started with the dream of bringing air travel within the reach of the common man and in
2003, Deccan became the first low-cost airline to fly pan-India. It is also the first airline to fly
to second tier cities like Hubli, Madurai and Visakhapatnam from major cities like Bangalore

5
and Chennai. With its recent merger with Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines, Air Deccan was
renamed Deccan, with SimpliFly as its tagline.

Deccan has 41 aircraft in its fleet consisting of 48-seater ATR-42s, along with a 180-seater
Airbus A-320s. The airline has recently acquired an ATR 72-500 aircraft. It flies to 65 cities
across India and is all set to fly to international destinations. Deccan's main base is
Bangalore.

JetLite

Born as Sahara Airlines in 1991, it started operations in 1993 and was rechristened Air
Sahara in 2000. Part of Sahara India Pariwar, Air Sahara became an international carrier in
2005.

After much deliberation and more legal fuss, Jet Airways, headed by Naresh Goyal, bought
Air Sahara in 2007 for Rs 1,450 crore (Rs 14.5 billion).

Jet Airways dubbed its low-cost counterpart JetLite. Jet carried forward Sahara's trademark of
'Indian-ness' in the look and feel of the airlines. The crew's dress code and the fleet colours
were retained to continue Sahara's Indian legacy.

With the tagline -- Warmth: Free. You're welcome -- JetLite is a mix of Sahara's hospitable
identity and Jet's classy appeal. It deviates from the low-cost track and focuses on service
positioning to beat competition.

JetLite's fleet comprises 17 Boeing 737 Aircraft and 7 Canadian Regional Jets.

GoAir

Promoted by the Wadia group, GoAir is a no-frills airline based out of Mumbai. It is
positioned as a 'Smart People's Airline', with its theme of 'Fly Smart.' With Jehangir (Jeh)
Wadia at the helm, GoAir's business model stresses on punctuality, affordability and
convenience.

GoAir's route network spans prominent business and leisure destinations, across India.
Currently it covers 13 destinations: Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin, Coimbatore,
Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Mumbai, Pune, and Srinagar.

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Go Air operates with state-of-the-art Airbus A320 aircraft fleet. It is planning to increase its
fleet size to 18 by March 2009 and to induct new routes as well.

GoAir has a tie-up with Cleartrip to offer return fares of Rs 599 across all sectors in India.

SpiceJet

SpiceJet was earlier known as Royal Airways, a reincarnation of the erstwhile ModiLuft.
Promoted by Ajay Singh, the Kansangra family, and Sanjay Malhotra, it started operations in
2005 and is based in New Delhi. SpiceJet made an entry into the Indian LCC market with a
fair price of Rs 99 for the first 99 days and followed it up with Rs 999 scheme for select
routes. Its target customer is the Indian Railways passenger traveling in the AC coach.

It has an aggressive marketing strategy with a theme that runs: "offering low 'everyday spicy
fares' and great guest services to price conscious travelers."

One of SpiceJet's cost cutting features is the 20kg luggage per passenger limit. No allowance
is made even for international passengers. It has a fleet of 6 Boeing 737-800 in single class
configuration with 189 seats. SpiceJet has opted for new generation Boeing 737-800 as it
supports the low-cost structure and is easy to maintain. Moreover, it is ideal for short to
medium haul flights in Indian conditions.

It is planning to induct new aircraft by end of 2008 as part of its expansion process and will
also reach out to more destinations in the country.

Indigo

Owned by InterGlobe Enterprises, Indigo took off in 2006 with its first flight from Delhi to
Imphal via Guwahati. Headed by Rahul Bhatia, it covers all major leisure and business
destinations like Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, etc. Known for its seamless,
precise, gimmick-free customer experience at affordable prices, Indigo links 14 destinations
across India. It constantly stresses on affordability, punctuality and hassle-free processing.

The current fleet of Indigo consists of 12 Airbus A320-200. These aircraft have a single class
facility consisting of 180 seating arrangements. Indigo created news when it placed an order

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for 100 Airbus aircraft at the Paris air show, which it will receive by 2016. It is planning to
reach 30 destinations by 2010.

Air-India Express

Air-India Express is a subsidiary of Air India. A low-cost airline, it mainly services the
Middle East. Its main base is Cochin International Airport, Kochi, with a hub at Trivandrum
International Airport, Thiruvananthapuram. Established in 2004, Air-India Express started
operations in 2005. Its aim is to provide value for money, efficient service and convenient
connectivity in the short-range routes at affordable prices.

When Indian Airlines and Air India merged, Air-India Express partly merged with Alliance
Air. The larger aircraft fleet of Alliance Air was partly absorbed into Air-India Express. Its
fleet consists of Boeing 737-800 aircraft.

It is planning expansion to European and American destinations as well. Air-India Express

gives its passengers all the essential on-board services needed for a comfortable flight. Free
standardised meals and limited on-board entertainment facilities are also available.

Jagson Airline

A low-cost airline based in Delhi; Jagson Airline commenced operations in 1992. It began
charter operations with two 18-seat Dornier 228-201 aircraft.

Jagson Airline flies to select destinations in Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Rajasthan. It
also operates a helicopter service between Srinagar, Baltal and Amarnath from its Chennai
base, Jagson Airline flies to Pondicherry and Tirupati.

At present it is using leased Airbus A321-200 aircraft. Jagson has withdrawn plans to launch
a nationwide scheduled low-cost airline by mid-2006 and plans to continue as a regional
airline.

MDLR Airline

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Based in Gurgaon, MDLR Airline is owned by Murli Dhar Lakh Ram (MDLR) Group. It
started operations in 2007. It was reported that MDLR airlines will cater to religious tourism.
It also plans to extend its services to places of pilgrimage.

A short-haul operator, it is flying from Delhi to Chandigarh, Jaipur, Jodhpur as well as from
Kolkata to Ranchi. MDLR uses Avro RJ-70 jets in its fleet. It is looking forward to
expanding the fleet with ATRs and Boeings too. Besides its low-cost fare MDLR is also
known for its vegetarian meals.

Paramount Airways

Paramount Airways was launched on October 19, 2005 by the Paramount Group, a leading
Indian textile manufacturer based in Madurai. The headquarters of Paramount Airways is in
Coimbatore.

Paramount operates only in South India connecting Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin, Coimbatore,
Hyderabad and Madurai.

Paramount Airways offers several value-added facilities such as valets to assist in boarding
the plane, gourmet meals, and a range of in-flight services and entertainment. It is the first
airline in India to launch the New Generation Embraer 170/190 Family Series Aircraft. It is
the first to offer full business class services but at prices that are equivalent to the economy
class fares of other carriers.

3.2 : Growth of Economy airline

2009 the expansion in Indian flight capacity has made it consistently one of the world’s
fastest-growing markets. In total the number of available departure seats has more than
doubled, swelling by 114.5 percent to 206 million in 2018. However, the growth in mainline
carriers has been much more modest, rising just 20.7 percent from 67.1 million to 80 million
over the decade.

While ten years ago the mainline carrier market dwarfed that of Economy airlines, with 2.3
times more seats available, LCC capacity has grown by an incredible 331.9 percent during

9
the period to reach 125million. That's 60.7 percent of the total Indian aviation market, up
from just 30.1 percent a decade earlier.

3.2.1: Domestic vs international

The growth of Economy airlines in India is unsurprising given the dominance of domestic
traffic in the market.

International growth has been strong from India, rising by 75.9 percent in the last ten years,
but the 126.6 percent growth of domestic departure seats has ensured that the market share
for domestic flights continues to grow.

Last year domestic capacity accounted for 80.4 percent of the country’s market, which is up
from 76.1 percent in 2019.

The tipping point came in 2012, when low-cost domestic departures overtook those of
mainline carriers. This is despite having nearly half of their market share just three years
earlier.

In 2009 total low-cost departure seats within India were 26.2 million compared to
46.9 million for mainline carriers.

Following the power shift in 2012, the continued growth of Economy airlines has been
extraordinary, while mainline carriers have remained broadly flat. Then marked acceleration
began in 2016 as IndiGo, the world’s fastest-growing airline, began to put huge amounts of
capacity into the market.

In 2018 the total domestic departure seats offered by Indian Economy airlines has reached
165.8 million, an amazing 341.5 percent higher than 2009. Conversely, mainline domestic
capacity has grown by just 6.6 percent, only recently recovering to the levels seen prior to the
aviation industry's great depression following 9/11.

Internationally, the growth of low-cost flights has also far outstripped mainline carriers,
although the total capacity available remains far lower. In an international aviation market,

10
which has grown by a total 75.9 percent over the decade, Economy airlines have grown total
seats by 239.9 percent compared to 53.6 percent for mainline carriers.

Although legacy airlines still have the lion’s share of the market with 76.8 percent of total
international capacity, this share has eroded from 88 percent in 2009.

3.2.2: Top carriers – mainline and Economy airline

Until its difficulties, Jet Airways offered the largest number of departure seats from India on
mainline carriers, and had continued to grow over the last few years.

The 28.2 million seats available on the carrier in 2018 was 68.5 percent higher than 2009 and
kept it ahead of the 2.36 million offered by Air India.

Elsewhere Vistara has grown aggressively since its first service in 2015 to take the third spot
among mainline carriers operating in the country, and Etihad’s 422.2 percent increase in
capacity over the past decade had it in fifth place, although some way short of Emirates
despite the latter’s more cautious expansion (32 percent since 2019).

Among Economy airlines IndiGo has grown to become the largest carrier in India by
capacity. In 2018 it offered three-and-a-half times the seats of its nearest rival SpiceJet,
despite the latter’s not-inconsiderable 155 percent growth in the last decade.

The growth at IndiGo means the carrier dominated the domestic market in 2018, offering
significantly more capacity than its closest rival Jet Airways.

SpiceJet’s domestic growth – 139.5 percent over the past decade – could well have seen it
leapfrog Air India to become the country’s third-largest domestic carrier by capacity in 2019;
Jet’s problems now mean that both the second- and third-place spots are up for grabs,
although they will remain some way behind market leader IndiGo.

3.3 : Forecast of Low-cost Airlines

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proclaims the addition of a new report titled, Low-Cost Airline Market Overview, Size
Estimation and Forecast to 2031, which lends a complete an in-depth analysis of the latest
trends, rendering specific details on market size, technical and business developments
persuading the business statistics outlook and opportunity assessment period by 2031. The
future scope projections of the Low-Cost Airline industry look promising with opportunities
in the various applications. The updated research work also offers a precise summary of
revenue fact with CAGR (%), sales channels analysis breakdown by production and market
valuation and net profit forecast 2022-2031.

As per the research work, the worldwide Low-Cost Airline market, which recommends
an Opportunity of USD 197760 Mn in 2018 assessment, will be up at a CAGR
of 8.8% during the time slot from 2018 to 2028 and the market’s valuation is likely to touch
USD 458728.6 Mn by the end of the forecast period.

Low-Cost airlines are passenger airlines offering travelling service tickets at a comparatively
cheaper rate than full service or traditional airlines. Low-Cost airlines are also known as prize
fighters, Low-Cost carriers (LCC), frills airlines, budget airlines and discount airlines. During
the 1970’s, the American domestic carrier – Southwest introduced the concept of Low-Cost
airlines with the sole objective of providing discounted airfares to consumers. The basis of
operation of Low-Cost airlines remains the same, which is to offer most economical prices to
the consumer by undercutting price levels of flagship carriers.

Market.us team will always focus on static and dynamic pillars of the Low-Cost Airline
industry such as limitations for analysing problems in existing business strategies and various
aspects such as application areas, platforms, and key players operating around the world
during coronavirus pandemic period (2022-2031). The report is moulded by tracking market
performance since 2012 and is one of the most profitable comprehensive reports.

Competitive arena of the Low-Cost Airline market with progressive research:

Competitive Analysis is one of the best sections of the report, comparing the progress of
leading firms with the help of key measures like market share, new developments, global

12
reach, local competition, pricing, and production. From the nature of competition to
upcoming changes in the supplier landscape, the report offers an in-depth competitive
analysis in the Low-Cost Airline market.

A thorough evaluation of the restrains included in the report portrays the contrast to drivers
and gives room for strategic planning. The intrinsic study conducted in this report centrs
around giving a point-by-point rundown of all the significant players or competitors taking
part in the worldwide Low-Cost Airline market. Some companies (AirAsia Group Berhad,
Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA, easyJet plc, Ryanair Holdings plc, Alaska Air Group Inc.,
WestJet Airlines Ltd., Qantas Airways, International Consolidated Airlines Group, S.A., Go
Airlines (India) Ltd., GOL Linhas Areas Inteligentes S.A., SpiceJet Limited, Dubai Aviation
Corporation, JetBlue Airways Corporation, Air Arabia PJSC, Southwest Airlines
Co.) excellent growth records from 2015 to 2020.

Some of these companies have achieved tremendous growth in sales and revenue, while net
income in the same period has doubled with the growth of performance and gross profit
margin. Over the years, the increase in gross profit margin shows that, in addition to the
increase in the cost of product sales, the company has a strong pricing power for products.
The Low-Cost Airline report further performs functional analysis, which contains detailed
information about the company’s manufacturing base, output, scale, value chain and product
specifications.

3.4: Aviation

Aviation is the activities surrounding mechanical flight and

the aircraft industry. Aircraft includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings,
wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air balloons and airships.

Aviation began in the 18th century with the development of the hot air balloon, an apparatus
capable of atmospheric displacement through buoyancy. Some of the most significant
advancements in aviation technology came with the controlled gliding flying of Otto
Lilienthal in 1896; then a large step in significance came with the construction of the first
powered airplane by the Wright brothers in the early 1900s. Since that time, aviation has been

13
technologically revolutionized by the introduction of the jet which permitted a major form of
transport throughout the world.

3.5: Indian Aviation

Aviation in India, broadly divided into military and civil aviation, is the fastest-

growing aviation market in the world according to the International Air Transport
Association (IATA). The hub of the nation's aviation manufacturing industry is at Bangalore
which has a 65% share of this economic sector.

3.6: Airline

An airline is a company that provides air transport services for

traveling passengers and freight. Airlines utilize aircraft to supply these services and may
form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in which they
both offer and operate the same flight. Generally, airline companies are recognized with
an air operating certificate or license issued by a governmental aviation body. Airlines may
be scheduled or charter operators.

3.6.1: Economy airlines

A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline is an airline that is operated with an especially high

emphasis on minimizing operating costs and without some of the traditional services and
amenities provided in the fare, resulting in lower fares and fewer comforts. To make up for
revenue lost in decreased ticket prices, the airline may charge extra fees – such as for carry-
on baggage. As of April 2020, the world's largest low-cost carrier is Southwest Airlines,
which operates primarily in the United States, as well as in some surrounding areas.

The term originated within the airline industry referring to airlines with a lower operating
cost structure than their competitors. While the term is often applied to any carrier with low
ticket prices and limited services, regardless of their operating models, low-cost carriers

14
should not be confused with regional airlines that operate short flights without service, or
with full-service airlines offering some reduced fares.

Chapter 04

Research Design

Title of the study:

“A Study on Customer Satisfaction towards Economy airlines in Bengaluru
city”

Methodology:
The descriptive research design is used for analyzing and studying the process of
Business Development. It is very simple & more specific than explanatory study.
Research that describes a phenomenon that is being studied. It focuses on answering
the how, what, and where questions.

Statement of problem:

Airlines industry is totally based on services, in which the product is transferred to

consumer during the travel in the form of total experience and satisfaction. This is very
difficult to accomplish by any air service provider. Companies in all industries face
problems concerning to the issue of retaining customers and acquiring satisfaction
through service quality management.

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 Objectives:
 To explore the factors which affect the perceived service quality in low-cost airlines.

 To study the impact of perceived airlines service quality on passenger satisfaction

 To study the value for money in order to travel in low-cost airlines

Scope of study:

This report will project the acceptance level of Customer Satisfaction towards
Economy Airlines in Bengaluru City.

Sampling method:
Convenience sampling method because it is a type of non-probability sampling method where
the sample is taken from a group of people easy to contact and reach.
Sample Size: 100

Methods of data collection

Questionnaire is an instrument for research, which consists of list of questions, along with the
choice of answers, printed or typed in a sequence on a form used for acquiring specific
information from the respondents. Questions are prepared and circulated among the responds
through Google forms and collected the information.

Data Sources:

Primary Data:
The different way of collecting primary data is personal interview, questionnaire,
survey etc. As my project is descriptive study there is no primary data collected as
such.

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Secondary Data:
Secondary data is collected from already existing sources in various organization
broachers & records. Secondary data for the study were collected from the magazines,
websites & other previous studies. To meet the objectives, the study used qualitative
research. The descriptive study was done through review of existing literature that
helped in validation and extraction of the important variables and factors. Data was
collected from secondary sources. Secondary sources were magazines, websites,
books, office executives, and company data.

I have also used an online questionnaire to understand the Customer Satisfaction

towards Economy airlines in Bengaluru city.

Limitations of the study

Time constrains – Number of customer’s were less and couldn’t get as many samples
for the research

Privacy policy – According to policy of the customer’s they were not ready to give the
sensitive information

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 Chapter 5

Data analysis and Interpretation

Low-cost Airlines Customer’s Percentage (%)

A) Air Asia 8 8
B) Indigo 76 76
C) Go air 4 4
D) Spice jet 12 12

Table No: 5.1 Which airlines provides the value for money?

Analysis:

The above table shows that 76 % customer’s feels that Indigo provides value for their
money. 4 % customers of Go air feel that the services are comparatively expensive.

18
Graph: 5.1 Airlines which provides the value for money

19
Inference:

From the above graph it is understood 76% customers feel Indigo is value for their
money and 4% customers of Go air feel that comparatively expensive.

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Table No: 5.2 Which of this airline provided the best services, during
travel time phrase?

Low-cost airlines Customer’s Percentage (%)

A) Indigo 60 60
B) Air Asia 20 20
C) Spice jet 18 18
D) Go air 2 2

Analysis:

Above table shows that 60 % customer’s feels that Indigo provided the best service,
during travel phase, 2 % customer feel that Go air provided below the industry
standard.

21
Graph: 5.2 The airlines which provides the best services, during travel
time phase

Inference:

The above graph shows that 60 % customer’s feel that Indigo provided the best
service, during travel time phase. Followed by Air Asia by 20%, then Spice jet by 18
% and the least Go air by 2%. This specifies that Indigo is providing the best service
during travel time phase.

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Table No: 5.3 Are you satisfied with the services provided in low-cost
airlines in Bangalore?

Rating customers Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 10 10
B) Satisfied 50 50
C) Neutral 36 36
D) Dissatisfied 4 4
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

From the table it is understood that 50 % customer’s satisfied with the service provided in low-
cost airlines in Bangalore. while 4 % customer ‘s was dissatisfied and other 36 % customer
had a neutral opinion.

23
Graph: 5.3 The customers satisfaction with the services provided in low-
cost airlines in Bengaluru

Inference:

The graph shows that 60 % customers are satisfied with the services provided in low-
cost airlines, were has 36 % customers had a neutral opinion or had a thought that they
can provide the services much better.

24
Table No: 5.4 Were the economical airlines on time during arrival?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 18 18
B) Satisfied 52 52
C) Neutral 26 26
D) Dissatisfied 4 4
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table depicts 44 % customers were satisfied with punctuality of economical

airlines on the time of arrival. where 22 % customers were Highly satisfied, 36 %
customers had a Neutral opinion and 2 % customer was Dissatisfied.

25
Graph: 5.4 The economical airlines on time during arrival

Inference:

From the pie chart it is understood that 70 % of customers were satisfied with the
arrival of flight on time. Whereas 30 % of the customers had a neutral or dissatisfied
opinion with the arrival time may be due to personal reasons.

26
Table No: 5.5 Were the economical airlines on time during departure?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 18 18
B) Satisfied 52 52
C) Neutral 26 26
D) Dissatisfied 4 4
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table depicts 52 % customers were satisfied with punctuality of economic airlines
on the time of departure. where 18 % customers were Highly satisfied, 30 %
customers had a Neutral opinion and 2 % customer was Dissatisfied.

27
Graph: 5.5 The economical airlines on the time during departure

Inference:

From the pie chart it is understood that 70 % of customers were satisfied the departure
of low-cost airlines on time. Whereas 26 % had a neutral opinion which may be due
to lack of travel. 4 % of customers were totally dissatisfied with the departure of the
flight.

28
Table No: 5.6 How is the In-flight services in low-cost airlines

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 12 12
B) Satisfied 42 42
C) Neutral 42 42
D) Dissatisfied 4 4
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows 42 % customers were satisfied with the In-flight services in low–cost
airlines, followed 42 % customers had a neutral opinion and 4 % customers were
dissatisfied.

29
Graph: 5.6 The in-flight services in low-cost airlines

Inference:

The above pie chart shows that 64 % of customers were satisfied with the in-flight
services in low-cost airlines. In the above graph, we can also see that neutral and
satisfied options have an equal no response, this depicts that the customers of neutral
opinion can be made into satisfied by providing the services even better.

30
Table No: 5.7 Were the seats and leg space comfortable in low-cost
airlines in Banglore?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 14 14
B) Satisfied 36 36
C) Neutral 36 36
D) Dissatisfied 12 12
E) Highly dissatisfied 2 2

Analysis:

The table shows that 14 % Customers were highly satisfied with the seats and the
comfortable leg spacing. Where 36 % customers were satisfied. 36 % customers had
a neutral opinion and 14 % customers were dissatisfied.

31
Graph: 5.7 The seats and leg space comfortable in low-cost airlines in
Bengaluru

Inference:

The table shows that 50 % of customers are satisfied with the leg space and seats
comfort. Where has another 50 % of customers had neural and dissatisfied this may
be because few customers must have felt they need to improve in the standards of
comfort.

32
,

Table No: 5.8 How was COVID -19 protocols were maintained in and out
of fleet?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 12 12
B) Satisfied 48 48
C) Neutral 32 32
D) Dissatisfied 4 4
E) Highly dissatisfied 4 4

Analysis:

The table shows that 12 % customers were highly satisfied with the COVID–19
protocols that were maintained, were as 48 % customers were satisfied and 32 % had
neutral opinions. 8 % customers were not satisfied with the protocols followed.

33
Graph: 5.8 The COVID-19 protocols maintained in and out of the fleet

Inference:

The pie graph shows that 60 % customers were satisfied with the COVID–19
protocols that were maintained, where as 40 % customers felt that they need to
improve the protocols in and out the fleet.

34
Table No: 5.9 How was the hygiene maintained In-flight?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 22 22
B) Satisfied 56 56
C) Neutral 20 20
D) Dissatisfied 2 2
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 22 % customers were highly satisfied with the hygiene maintained in
the flight, 56 % customers were satisfied were as 20 % customers had neutral opinions. 2 %
customer was dissatisfied with the hygiene maintained.

35
Graph: 5.9 The hygiene maintained in-flight

Inference:

The graph shows that 78% customers were satisfied with the hygiene maintained in-flight.
Where 22 % customers felt that they need to improve the hygiene standards in-flight.

36
Table No: 5.10 How was the service provided by economy airlines from
the time of check-in to boarding of a flight?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 12 12
B) Satisfied 62 62
C) Neutral 24 24
D) Dissatisfied 2 2
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 12 % customers were highly satisfied with the time of check-in to
boarding of a flight, 62 % customers were satisfied were as 24 % customers had neutral
opinions. 1 customer was dissatisfied with the hygiene maintained.

37
Graph: 5.10 The service provided by economy airlines from the time of
check-in of a flight

Inference:

The pie graph shows that 74% customers were satisfied with the time of check-in to
boarding of a flight. Where has 26 % had a neutral or dissatisfied opinion, they may be
because of the personal reasons. Like during luggage check-in, or time of boarding gate etc.

38
Table No: 5.11 How effective was the safety demo performed In-flight by
low-cost airlines?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 22 22
B) Satisfied 46 46
C) Neutral 30 30
D) Dissatisfied 2 2
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 22 % customers were highly satisfied with the safety demo performed
In-flight, 46 % customers were satisfied were as 30 % customers had neutral opinions. 2 %
customer was dissatisfied with the hygiene maintained.

39
Graph: 5.11 The effectiveness of the safety demo performed in-flight by
low-cost airlines

Inference:

The graph shows that 66% customers were satisfied with the safety demo performed In-
flight, 32% customers felt that the safety demo wasn’t that effective in low-cost airlines.

40
Table No: 5. 12 How was the situation In-flight maintained by the crew
during the turbulence?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 14 14
B) Satisfied 50 50
C) Neutral 36 36
D) Dissatisfied 0 0
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 14 % customers were highly satisfied with the situation In-flight
maintained by the crew during the turbulence, 50 % customers were satisfied were as 36 %
customers had neutral opinion.

41
Graph 5.12 The situation maintained in-flight by the crew during the
Turbulence

Inference:

The graph shows that 64 % customers were satisfied with the situation In-flight maintained
by the crew during the turbulence, 18 % customers had a neutral opinion, this may be due to
various factors, where few respondents wouldn’t experience it or would have thought that
they could have maintain it better.

42
Table No: 5.13 How satisfied are you with the ticket fares in a low-cost
airline?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 14 14
B) Satisfied 42 42
C) Neutral 34 34
D) Dissatisfied 10 10
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 14 % customers were highly satisfied with the ticket fares in a low-
cost airline, 42 % customers were satisfied were as 34 % customers had neutral opinions
and 10 % customers were dissatisfied.

43
 Graph: 5.13 The satisfaction of ticket fares in a low-cost airline

Inference:

The pie graph shows that 56 % customers were satisfied with the ticket fares in a low-cost
airline. Whereas 46 % customers had a neutral or dissatisfied opinion this may be because of
various personal reasons, like the customer may have booked at the flight during festival
season or various peak hours’ time.

44
Table no: 5.14 satisfied with the luggage allowances provided in a low-
cost airline?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 4 4
B) Satisfied 46 46
C) Neutral 30 30
D) Dissatisfied 20 20
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 4 % customers were highly satisfied with the luggage allowances
provided in a low-cost airline, 46 % customers were satisfied were as 15 customers had
neutral opinions and 20 % customers were dissatisfied.
.

45
 5

Graph: 5.14 The satisfaction of luggage allowances provided in a low-cost

airlines

Inference:

The graph shows that 50 % customers were satisfied with the luggage allowances provided
in a low-cost airline, 30 % customers had a neutral opinion this may be because of lack of
travel or wouldn’t have carried much luggage.

46
Table No: 5.15 The taste of the food served in a low-cost airline?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Highly satisfied 10 10
B) Satisfied 18 18
C) Neutral 50 50
D) Dissatisfied 22 22
E) Highly dissatisfied 0 0

Analysis:

The table shows that 10 % customers were highly satisfied with the taste of the food served
in a low-cost airline, 18 % customers were satisfied were as 50 % customers had neutral
opinions and 22 % customers were dissatisfied.

46
Graph: 5.15 The taste of the food served in a low-cost airline

Inference:

The pie graph shows that 28 % customers were satisfied with the taste of the food served in
a low-cost airline. Where 72 % of customers had a neutral or dissatisfied opinion, where the
low-cost airlines should focus on the food served in their operation this is one of the draw
backs question in the paper.

47
Table No: 5.16 your travel in a low-cost airline?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) National flight 92 92
B) International flight 8 8

Analysis:

The table depicts 92 % customers have taken their flight to national destination in a
low-cost airline. Were as 8 % customers have taken international destinations.

48
Graph: 5.16 Travel in a low-cost airline

Inference:

The graph depicts 92 % customers have taken their flight to national destination in a
low-cost airline. Whereas 8 % customers have taken international destinations this is
because of lack of international flights and international destinations. Whereas low-
cost airlines are trying to expand their wings to most of international destinations too.

49
Table No: 5.17 How did you board the low-cost airlines fleet?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Coach boarding 66 66
B) Aero bridge 34 34

Analysis:

The table depicts 66 % customers have used coach boarding while boarding the low-
cost airlines, where as 34 % customers have used aero bridge.

50
Graph: 5.17 The method of boarding a low-cost airline

Inference:

The bar graph depicts 66 % customers have used coach boarding while boarding the
low-cost airlines, where as 34 % customers have used aero bridge, this is done for
cost cutting in an operation.

51
Table No: 5.18 Was the assistant given to Specially abled people in low-
cost airlines?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

A) Yes 84 84
B) No 16 16

Analysis:

The table depicts 84 % customers confirmed about assistant given to specially abled
people, were 16 % customers disagreed with the statement.

52
Graph: 5.18 The assistant given by low-cost airlines for specially abled
People

Inference:

The graph depicts 84 % customers confirmed about assistant given to specially abled
people. where 16 % customers disagreed with the statement, this may be because of
lack of observation done by the customers who have disagreed with the statement.

53
Table No: 5.19 Name a place, where you have travelled in a low-cost
airline?

Place customer
Delhi 14
Kerala 10
Chennai 8
Bangalore 8
Mumbai 6
Hyderabad 6
Jaipur 4
Dubai 4
Goa 4
Gujarat 12
Kochi 6
Raipur 2
Jammu and Kashmir 2
Oman 2
Maldives 4
Munnar 2
Mauritius 2
Pune 4

Analysis:

The table depicts 14 customers travelled to Delhi were as very few have traveled to
Pune, Munnar, Maldives’s and etc.

54
Graph: 5.19 The places where customers travelled through low-cost
airlines

Inference:

The pie chart depicts 15.2 % customers travelled to Delhi were as very few have
traveled to Pune, Munnar, Maldives’s and etc.

55
 Table No: 5.20 Would you refer your friends and family to travel in a
low-cost airline?

Rating customer Percentage (%)

Yes 94 94
No 6 6

Analysis:

The above table depicts that 94 % customers would refer the low-cost airlines to their family
and friends. were as 6 % customers wouldn’t.

56
 Graph: 5.20 Reference of friends and family to travel in low-cost airlines

Inference:

The above graph depicts that’s 94 % customers would refer the low-cost airlines to their family and
friends. whereas 6 % customers wouldn’t. This shows that people will travel in a low-cost airline and
there is wide opportunity to grow further.

57
 CHAPTER-6

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

FINDINGS

The key finding of the research is that most of the customers felt that most
economical services is provided by Indigo airlines

 Most of the customers were satisfied with the time travel phase provided by
Indigo

 Majority of the customers were satisfied with the overall services provided by
low-cost airlines.

 Many customers felt that the leg spacing and seat comfort were not up to the
expectations.

 40% were not satisfied with the Covid-19 protocols maintained by low-cost
airlines.

 Majority of the people felt that the service during the time of check-in to
boarding of the fight were satisfactory.

 Few customers felt that the pricing of tickets was higher even in low-cost
airlines.

 Majority of the customers were not satisfied with food served during their
travel in low-cost airlines.

 92% of the customers have used low-cost airlines only with the national
boundaries.

 94% confirmed that they would recommend low-cost airlines to their friends
and family.

58
 RECOMMENDATIONS

Some of the suggestions by the researcher after the study which will help the performance of
the low-cost airlines are:

 Low-cost airlines should focus on the leg spacing and seat comfort so that customers
are comfortable during their travel

 It is important for airlines to focus on safety protocols to ensure that customers

travelling are safe and healthy.

 Low-cost airlines should make it a priority to provide good quality to the customers.

 They need to expand their business model to international routes to cater to the
requirement of the customers.

 It is imperative for the airlines to adapt to the latest technology to increase the fuel
efficiency and aircraft maintenance.

59
 CHAPTER-7
CONCLUSION

 Low-Cost airlines made a revolution in the traditional commercial aviation business model
with important contributions to the increase of flights and traffic to selected airports, as well
as positive impacts in the development of tourism in those regions.

The pricing policy of the low-cost carriers is usually very dynamic, with discounts and tickets
in promotion. Like other carriers, even if the advertised price may be very low, it often does
not include charges and taxes. With some airlines, some flights are advertised as free (plus
applicable taxes, fees and charges). Depending on the airline, perhaps as many as ten percent
of the seats on any flight are offered at the lowest price and are the first to sell. The prices
steadily rise thereafter to a point where they can be comparable or more expensive than a
flight on a full-service carrier.

Total five factors were identified which influence the perceived service quality but amongst
all Assurance, Airlines Employees and Comfort & Cleanliness are the most crucial factors
which need to be taken care by the management of low-cost carrier. Assurance is
considered to be the most important factor which requires special attention of the
management of low-cost carrier. People are worried about their baggage at the time of
check in as well as at the time of check out. Safety during the flight, quality of food served
during the flight and ticket prices charged by the airlines also affects the perception of the
guest. If the management want to increase the customer satisfaction, all the variables
included in the Assurance must be considered. Airlines Employees are the other dimensions
that influence the perceived service quality. Therefore, specific training programs must be
organized for the employees who are involved in the delivery of the services of the low-cost
airlines. Moreover, to motivate the employee’s incentive schemes can be introduced for the
employees of low-cost airlines. A positive association exists between the attributes of
perceived service quality and passenger satisfaction. It is clear that if perceived service
quality will increase it will lead to Passenger Satisfaction. Therefore, the management of
the low-cost airlines must do all the things which increase the perceived service quality,
which will ultimately lead to customer satisfaction.

60