SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

TOUR 501 –ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR MID-TERM PROJECT

DR. HUSEYIN ARASLI

Alibay Mammadov
Tina Noorafshan

1
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

INTRODUCTION

Service quality of low cost airline refer to the cost at which services are been render to
customers. That is, services like baggages delivery, arrival time, care taking and hotest
services render to a specific or a group of customers in a given department of the airline
company.

1.1 Importance of the Study Low Cost Airliness

The importance of this study goes along side with the different airlines and airports. Some
companies render their services at low cost for some reasons related to their ethical culture
while others are base on rules and regulations stipulated to them by the top level management.

Apart from the above mentioned, there are four services quality of low cost classification.
That is;

2
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

FLIGHT SCHEDULES

FLIGHT ATTENDANTS

TANGIBLE

STAFF

Flight schedules: Here, the airline company schedule the different directions and checking
points where the customer will pass by before arriving its final destination. That is different
places where the plane will stop related to the customer destination.

Flight attendants: There are also known as stewardess or cabin crew. These are members of
aircrew employed by airline abroad commercial flights, primary to ensure the safety and
comfort of passengers.

Tangible: Here, it deals with all tangeable products found in the airline to ensure the
comfort and to satisfied the need of customers. Some of which are food stuffs, win, leisure
like video games, movies and many others.

Staff: This is made up of both airline employers and airports employees. They all ensure
the good governance and the going concerned of both the company and the airport as well.

1.2 Past studies about service perception of Low cost Airlines

Tourism and marketing research has aguied that it is not surficient for a product or service to
be memorable; that is , it also has to be delightful (TORES & KLINE,2013). Not all elements
of the service possesses the power to evoke customer delight. Elements are consider to be
essential, so their presence would not caused high customer satisfaction but rather the absence
of dissatisfaction. On the other hand, certain services and products attributes that are often
unpredictable and go beyond customers expectation may only enhance customer experience.
The concept of customer satisfaction factor structure was grown in the Herzberg et al’s (1959)
two factor job satisfactory job theory. According to this theory, satisfaction and dissatisfaction
are not opposite extremes, but two independent continua. With popularization of this theory in
service quality and behavioural research , constructs and definition of satisfied versu
dissatisfiers has ermerged. Dissatisfiers refer to service attributes that cause dissatisfaction
when poorly executed and lead to complaining behavior, but not resulting in complement
behavour when their performance is high. Contrary to dissatisfiers, high performance of
satisfiers generate strong satisfier but poor performance is not an anticedent of
dissatisfaction.

Few researchers have examind the factors of travelers satisfaction and dissatisfaction in the
air transport industry. How ever this studies were concerned with establiching new theorical
analytical frame work and approaches using data collected at a single airport. Adressing the
limited the generalizability of previous studies’results, thgere is a nick for understanding with
air travel factors are concided to be essentials ( dissatisfiers) and which factors save as
enhance of passengers satisfaction( satisfier) In a global context. To bridge that gap, the

3
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

current study aimed to regornised universal dimensions of air travel service quality by
identifying the key satisfiers and dissatisfiers from a large sample of responces utilizing vitual
data minning techniques. Bearing in mind that tursims services begins at the aiport, this study
focus on air port grown; service and the results would provide important theoretical and
practical contribution to the travel and tourism field.

2 literature review

Along with improuvement of quality standard in the majority of service industries, the air
travel industry has significantly changed in the passed two decates. These changes reflected in
higher quality standard, various pricing strategies an growth of air transport traffic amonth
others. According to the ACI world report 2012 the totaltraffic passengers increased by 4.2
percent compared to the previous year, with significant growth in the Asia- Pacific market,
relatively stable in North America and a declined in the European market ( airport council
international 2013). The largest air travel in market in 2012 was the Asian pacific market with
a share of altmost 30 Percent RPK ( revenue passenger Killometre) (international civil
aviatuation organization,2012 ). On the other hand, the north American continent is the home
of over the world busiest airports with Atlanta, Chicago, Los angels, Dallas and denvert
airport being ranked among the top ten busiest airport(airport cancel international- North
America 2012).

As a consequence, airports are operating with a limited capacity possibling resulting in a

higher expected air traffic affecting the passengers overall satisfaction. Airports worldwide
have recognize the necessity of examined customers satisfaction and identifying cues for
enhasing airport experience. Airport council international 2013 introuduce Airport services
quality (ASQ) initiative with the aim to measure passengers experience in different segments,
obtained from questionnaire responses. Even though surviving is and important test method
airport quality questionnaire should be susceptible to further enhancements with new topics
that emerged from air travel passenger responds.

2.1 Customer Perception in Low cost airlines

In the past, they have been a global change in airport, airline and hotel industry which have
highly profound effects on the development of these very volatile sector of economy in many
countries around the globe. Demographie, lega - political, socio-economy and technological
change gave a way to transformation of this vitile sector which is airline ,airport and hotel
industries.

Globalization : the globalization of companies which is continually growing in respons to

the changing environment of international trade. Some of this trading activities which include
European and north American companies with the aim to increase marketing products and
services to the newly emerging economist of the middle east, latin America, east and central
Europe . Globalisation which is aimed as transforming something phenomenal into global
4
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

once can also be defined as a way in which people of the world are unified into a single
society and function together. This process which combiened economy, technological, soci
cultural and political forces. Thgis idea of globlisation is often use to refer a narrower sense of
economic globalization involving intergration of national economy into international
economy through trading activity, international directect investment, income flow, migration
and the spread of technology. Here , much but not all of the focus is on the narrower
perspective although care the improuvement in transport and personal interchange that airport
and airline transport facilitaded has broader socio culktural and political implication.

Mostly this process have been technology-driven ,although facilitated by brought political
shift, such as demise of the subject sytem, the gradual emergency of international free trade
bodies which are the Europeans union and woirld trade organization and reduction in global
political tension. Many of these technique have been in transport, in particular they have been
a mass infrastructural and technology development in sure a way that will also transport
information,, while traditional transport of often see the revolution in telecommunication as
some how different and outside their field of study. It is infact the first measure transport
change since the widespread option of mechanized transport in mid nineteen century. Airline
and airport was highly regulated and protected in these environment with the interntion of
been use as a center of economy and political project. But despite this rule it ius enlargely
important of the technology until after the world war II . The british emparial airway is an
example which was used in carrying passengers to the colonies iun the ninety thirty’s.

Where there have been almost international tighteness of regulation that run counter to
the market liberalization , have been the U.S call ‘social regulation’ and ‘ quality
regulatrion’ fort Europeans calls. This concerned so much matters that consumers
environment , safety, security and labor protection. These are those area that have been
traditionally dealt with at the international level by the civil aviation organization (ICAO)
setup under the Chicago convention and in accord with some peculiar international accord
such as the warsar convention that dates back to 1929 and this with liabilities in case of
accident.

Modernization: The modern airports, airline and the modern industry is one of the that
increasingly operates within a liberal market while government control over fair market entry,
and capacity continue in many other countries, the foreign control under the bilateral ASA
structure have improve moving broad open tiles formulation allowing the free distribution of
services between member states.

The airport industry which is rapidly changing nowadays , air travelers have magnifully
choose among airport and there is an increasing urgence among airport marketers to
differentiate them selves from each others by trying them selves in other to meet consumers
need better than the competition whilke passenger perception of aiport , airline services
quality is one of several variables that is routes , scheduling , location and price that
contribute to overall airport attractiveness. Industry researchers regularly measure passenger
perception of airport services quality. On like the more widely accepted gap theory model for
5
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

majory services quality. Both academic and commercial airport researchers more likely to
mesure services quality through monitoring services performance

Customer perception of service quality, the role of information and communication

technologies. The study analysis have shown how information and communication
technologies determined the quality of service account to certain results, we can show that
information and communication technology are significant factors affecting passengers
perception, so ; airport should improuve the communication of flight information. The
increase of passengers and flights required airport operators investing improving the confort
for users. In this regard, information and communication technology represent on of the key
issue to take into account. The empirical results based on a servey to conducted by the
Chilean aviation authority during april 2013 among the traveler of santiago de chile’s airport
suggest that airport should improve mainly the way of communicating flights to users and
location of different airport’s utilities

2.2 Value for money in Low cost airlines

Budget travel is no longer preserving just short journey. Some easy jet have made it cheap
around Europe of short hop. This is due to the growth of long-haul operators offering low-cost
journeys to more far flung destination. Aeroflot subsidiary pobeda Airport, wow air, which is
owned by icelanddic, german operator eurowing and Norwegian airlines are amoung those
that have emerged with the aimed of making passenger money travel further. Despite the
great promise saving come wwith catches. Other likes checking in luggages is done at a
price, also something to eat on board will not be free also booking
fees will also be also be add to the cost. That is even through taken the cheapest option of
flying over a long distance worth the hassle will be expensive what ever the case.

Limited choice, that is despite the attractiveness of it price it destination maybe

limited . pobeda airline which over departure in London stansted to st petersburg, Moscow or
Yekaterinburg. While on the other eurowing with is at low cost long distance travel to more
than fifty countries it flies to are limited that is mostly European country although it does

6
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

Offer the US, MAURITUS, Thailand, cuba , dominicain republic provided will be happy to
fly via other agencies like DUSSELDOIF . People going to places like boston , Guadeloupe,
Buenosaires fly over long haul short cost will mostly go via Barcelona.

Also price may face Increase when it is holiday period, spending new years in places
surrounded by hiustorical lands mark of saint pertersbourg. Flights are offered at reasonable
price that is 223 dollars and only hand baggage but a pre assigned site if you want a 20kg
check in baggage allowance and seat selection that you are supposed to upgrate to its plus
option left that return price 268 dollas . Due to that we can see this is where the problem face
by any one flying long haul low cost on meaning on the budget flight faces , because wants
cant survive with just one loggage for his or her holiday that is , for someone going to spend
vacancies in Russian with a 10 kg allowances will be more difficult so as a result it will be in
evitable that is the option will be to pay more . As we said the probeder option is still a lot,
cheaper than the british airway offering economy basic flights on the same day for 436 dollar,
return this rises to 476 dollar on economy plus which offer free seat choice and 23 kg check
baggage but you still pay for food and drinks. That is in general, value of money in long haul
low cost does not differ because customer will still have to pay more for their checking
baggages ,drink and food on board and booking .

2.3 Customer Perception of sevvice attributes relevant to Low Cost Airline

The income of passengers and benefits require air ports operators invest in improving
the comfort for users. In this regard, information and communication technology (ICT)
represent one of the key issue to take into account. This paper take into assess services quality
In an air port environment and examining how ICT service affect passengers perception about
the quality of the services at the air port functional areas. The empirical results, based on a
survey conducted by the Chilean aviation authority during april 2013 among travelers of
Santiago de chile’s air port sujested that air port utilities implication for air port managers
and policy makers are drawn from the empirical findings and future research lines are
suggested. Source ; juan Gabriel brida, luis Moreno,S, tourism managemennt persperctive
(20,209,216,2016).

Due to these improvement in ICT, customer perception of service attributes will lead to low
cost to customers who want less comfort air plain and hostel while on the other hand ,
luxurious air plaine that is prestigious class plain customers paid hudge amount of money so
as to benefit for high quality services.

This service not only influence the goodwill and consumer satisfaction of air line company
but determined the major factors of their operation, cost and advantage . not only air line
companies with good quality services will gain more customers, but the word of mouth
communication is the one increasing customer sources and improve in the internal
achievement and operating. This is done by streightining their competitive superiority in the
marketing era, resent reseach did not have the capacity to study the relation among various
factors of quality service. This is compensated by effective decision trial and evaluation
laboratory.

7
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

Service quality has receive much important because of it ability to substained as a source of
competitive advantage. This service quality have been defined in many ways by several
researchers. With regard to the service quality of air line companies many interenational and
domestic scholars have studied it in the bases of PZB service quality model and PZB service
quality expansion model or servqual service quality evaluation criteria aiming to carry out
imperical research on the differences in the service quality.

More over considering the intangeability of service , when travelers estimatesservice quality ,
there is fuzziness on the recognition of some liguistigue variable. Service quality evaluation
criteria connotation of air line company. The related research method and objective of service
quality of air line quality are different among differnts scholars . for example CHANG and
YEH 2002 aimed at the influencing factors of the service quality of air line companies and
use the PZB theory as the structure and use the important performance quality of attribute
diagram for final analysis.

According to different views from scholars, service quality evaluation criteria of airline
company aimed at the air line company used by people and sorted out 30 items such as fly
safty, airplan repair capacity, pilot skill,ontime flight, idle ticket price etc that influence the
cooperate image link, aimed at the domestic root and sujested 19 items of service quality
characteristics of airline companies and also suggested the service provider should have a zeal
and safe good manners and a smile and low rate of fly break down that have the highest
degree of influence on the overall service quality standard.

2.4 Role of Web reviews in Low Cost Airlines

The review site is a web site on which review can be posted about people business, products
or services. Customers review pictures concerning airports around the world and see what is
been said airport, airline and hotels industries. So following web review in airports and
airline, Once can have a specific idea of how companies or industry function and can easily
come with his or her conclusion.

As we can have an idea of RYANAIR functioning situation which is not as absolute

serious as some of them pretend on their web site. Some customers complain that their flights
was changed without them been informed about the situation, the customer was told the flight
was changed from Saturday to Friday without his authorization and was told that information
will be given to him any time as from two days before the flight which was eight month away,
which is not absolutely faire especially if the customer have booked for accommodation
which have been made before and when a refund was asked, nothing was given to the
customer who later on says she was attracted by the low cost of the company front and after
this deception says I won’t take RYANAR long for no reason? Brief this chows how web
review influence customer either negatively or positively depending on people ways and
understanding of a situation.

Dynamic growth ; It is the reflect of the greatest feature of airline industry because a
conduit of physical communication shows that increasing disposable income and reduces the
cost of travel together with leisure part with increase in demand . according to some interprise

8
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

once survived from economic regulation which can also be the face of innovation which is a
business model aimed at targeting long haul low cost operations , which was a practice
performed in the south west sees about fourty years ago and now spread in around the whole
world.

Many thoughts where said on long haul low cost which can not work due to a little different
between new entrants and legacy carrier on aircraft , so a need of flight was empirical for an
uncontrollable factor which will be able to hinder the model that was once which could have
an overnight at destination and more important that the legacy. Concerning the aircraft that
will be used for long haul low cost , it was to be more bigger than the legacy one taking into
consideration the number of seats which is supposed to be more than that expected in other to
equilibrate cost on travel which was to operate 50 percent below that of the opposition a
figure from AIRSIA X and SCOOT.

3 IMPLICATION

3.1 What does scholars suggest regarding service quality improvement on Low Cost
Airlinesdss

This refer to that service which are been proposed by scholar in other to improved on service
quality in reference to air port , air line (long haul low cost, low cost and leisure) and hotel
industry. That is due to increased in customers air port and air line have to improve on certain
projects in their companies to attract customers and overcome competition in the domain. In
other to improve on service quality in reguard to scholar suggest like;

Air transport

Passenger service evaluation

Perceived service quality gap and analysis

Multiple criterials decision analysis

Air transport; when talking of air transport we have to mensioned essential elements like net
work , planning and graph. That is to make heuristic method to be put in place in other to
over come air line disruption problem arising.

The disruption of a flight disturbs passengers in many ways that they cant achieved or
conclude a planned trip. That is , air craft and passengers having the same priority by re
assigning them and trade a limited flight with the aim of minimizing the cost induced for the
airline by the recovering from the disruption of a flight.

Passenger services; these are services render by the company to the passengers. these services
are either tangible or intangible. Tangeable services are been render by working people know
as cabin crew so as to facilite the going concern and the safety of both the the employee and

9
 SERVICE QUALITY OF LOW COST AIRLINE

the customers. These tangeable services can either be serving of food stuffs while untangeable
services are services like phone call and rendering untoucheable services.

Perceived service quality gap and analysis;the study measure perssive service quality is
associated with user satisfaction. That is , in other to identify users need or expectations. We
need to take in to consideration the previous service performed . an example of instruments
that was used is survew DUL users. Users responds for minimum expected and perceived
service where calculated. In then so , user satisfaction can be identify in both case that is
assessment of PSQ and satisfaction.

Multiple criteria ; it is a new methodology which investigate to support the priority of

customers , which throught various satisfaction surveys. This new methodology which consist
of two keys components on one side innovation and on the other side transforming of data
systematically and consistentially from different measurement scales to a common scale with
the exact features and the profile iof the data preserve. A case study is an examined using and
interligent decision system to illustrate the application of the decision modeling ,frame work
and decision support process for prioritizing the voice oif customer for a world lrading car
manufacturer .

REFERENCES

JUAN GABRIEL BERIDA, LUIS MORENO (TOURISM MANAGEMENT

PERSPECTIVES 20,209,216,) (2016)

RAY WANG (PROCEDUA- SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCE) (2011)

STUDENTS SOURCE

10