Winging It

I appreciate that you dug deeper into J.D. Power's process, but I have such a hard time believing their results. Maybe it's just a "compared to what" problem. Philadelphia is not a completely terrible airport compared to other major American airports, but it is absolutely awful compared to what it could be. I have particular hatred for the sameness of the retail offerings (no variety in books or magazines), the blizzard of ads and the expensive, poor-quality food that has such a lack of variety.

I measure airport quality by things like the bathrooms (is there ventilation, do the stall doors close, is there a hook to hang your belongings on, how many "automatic" sinks or soap dispensers do I have to try before one works). I measure by the signage (if I get off the plane and have to run for it, can I find my next gate?).

I measure by the obnoxiousness of the food and other items for sale (every major airport I've been to fails this one; the food is wildly overpriced and all of the same sort. I cannot believe that there is no market for decent fresh food).

And I measure it by whether I actually get from Point A to Point B, and how the airline employees manage the process. Some things are under an airline's control, some are not. Lying is under their control, so I'm happy to hold them responsible when they do it.

I passed through Tucson recently, and although it's a much smaller airport, I was pleasantly shocked by the paucity of ads. Going down the escalator to baggage claim, I was confronted with...a beautifully bare adobe-colored wall. No visual assault of Buy This or Public Service That. I don't know if this is because Philadelphia thinks it is more cash-strapped or because Tucson gets its money other ways, but it sure was nice.

Denver is the worse airport, followed by Cincinnati (Kentucky)... the organizational skills at those 2 need big improvements, Philadelphia has gotten better, but in the end all airports have suffered since 9/11/2001. They are at the mercy of the TSA, which cares very little about passenger amenities and comfort.

Terminal A West gets high marks for airiness and cleanliness. Terminal A East pales in comparison. The security line for both is funneled into a single check-point that has 7 or 8 stations but the wait can still be pretty long.

Terminals B and C are USAir and have always seemed nicer in terms of food and store choices. But the security lines can get pretty bad, prompting folks to scurry over to D or A.

Terminal D always seemed like the orphaned terminal. Like A East, the ceilings are low and the concrete look not very friendly.

I've never had to fly out of terminal E.

Compared to SFO, car and rail access is much, much better at PHL. You can take BART from SFO into the city, but it takes this circular route through the city (not bad if you want an underground tour). Washington Dulles is horrible (old, too many people). At DFW, it depends on which terminal you happen to be in. I didn't think Denver was too bad. San Jose (SJC) has got to be the smallest "international" airport; I think I've just gotten used to it and they are going through some severe renovations by adding terminal B and rebuilding the access roads.

I can only imagine what the indirect impact of the rocket fuel prices have on airport employees.

I have just completed a round trip from Saigon, Vietnam, via Hong Kong, Chicago to Philadelphia, then on to Las Vegas, Denver, Calgary, returning to Saigon via San Francisco and Hong Kong. Chicago was not very well organized upon arrival, with very, very few amenities, crowded concourses with few seats, and it seemed like a very long wait for my connection to Philly. Once in Philly, I was out within ten minutes (even with checked baggage), so I was quite pleased with that. Checking out on departure was no problem, and while I wasn't that interested in the shops or food, I did receive polite and good service when I did patronize them. No complaints at all, and compared to the crowded confusion at both Ohare and Las Vegas, Philly was great.

Scooter is right.. the TSA agents don't care about passengers, they don't even know how to smile...PHL on top.. Hard ot believe Tom. I have been to ABQ, SLC, DFW,ELP,PHX in last few weeks, and all are better then PHL...Do you know of anyone who participated in survey, I don't
YHS

Really, the JD Powers' results do not surprise me. I live in Philadelphia and travel extensively throughout the year, having used all of the large category aiports, many within the last 12 months. I prefer PHL to most other airports. I've often pondered why and have ultimaelty determined that, despite it's age and layout, there is a convenience and vitality to Philadelphia International that is rare amongst North American airports.

While it is easy to be dazzled by the light and spaciousness of new terminals (Toronto's Pearson comes to mind- which I've used 8 times already this year), most don't have the density and variety of services that PHL has. The scale of PHL's amenities are human-centered. Whether in B/C or F, they are closely located to one another lending a feeling of walking a pleasant boulevard- a distinct advantage over the miles of open space one has to negotiate in newer terminals to find one restaurant to relax in prior to flight. The physical compactness of the terminals lend a "street-scape" bustle to each concourse. Ample and accessible public art accentuates the visual experience of passing through PHL's terminals.

Additionally, check-in and security lines are minimal for an airport of its size. (yes- US Airways' service has improved dramatically over the last year). My status used to help here (I've been at least Star Gold to Chairman's for over 10 years), but in my last 10-15 flights, there has been no line at general security check-in, rendering preferred check-in useless. Retrieving baggage has been a breeze lately too.

PHL has a ways to go in terms of overall cleanliness and condition of bathrooms, but that's mostly in B/C.

Keep up the good work PHL!

As a frequent flier and business traveler I feel I am somewhat of an expert regarding the quality of service through Philadelphia Internationa Airport and USAirways consistent efforts at increasing the quality of travel in and out of Philadelphia. I have flown 39 segments with USAirways and 10 flight with other airlines so far this year.

Compared to airports like BWI, Dulles and Reagon National in DC, Boston's Logan, Atlanta's Hartfiled and Chicago's O'Hare, Philadelphia is paradise to deal with. I never or rarely check bags so I can't speak for baggage handling, however, as far as check in, going through security and the quality of TSA services, for a large airport Philly is as good as it gets. You need to deal with Logan's inconsistent TSA services from week to week, Atlanta's cattle shute system with lacking security control, or the differences in what type of bag can and can not go through security at O'Hare from one terminal to the next, depending on the security agent and how much conflict they wish to create. I could write a whole story on this subject alone that would give you a good laugh.

Nothing is good or bad until it is compared to something. Knowing how to prepare for and use the service of an airport is equally important, and I have that knowledge through first hand experience. Compared to the competition I for one am very happy that Philadelphia International Airport is my home base.

Joe Mazur
Plymouth Meeting