Friday, July 18, 2003

Hartsfield on top for customer expectations

American Express' SkyGuide has recognized Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport with first place honors in two categories of its 2003 Best of Travel Awards.

Hartsfield received top honors in exceeding passenger expectations, and in hassle-free flight connection, officials announced today.

SkyGuide subscribers chose Hartsfield as their favorite airport ahead of Chicago O'Hare and Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW). The same airports were selected as the top three for hassle-free connections with Hartsfield ranking first, followed by DFW and O'Hare.

"At Hartsfield the passenger experience is always first and foremost on our minds," Aviation General Manager Ben DeCosta said. "We strive daily to make time spent in our airport pleasant and to give the customer the best experience possible. As we work through enhanced security issues and changes in passenger flow throughout Hartsfield, we are making every effort to keep the impact on the customer to a minimum."

The 2003 survey is the first conducted by SkyGuide and asked frequent travelers to rank a variety of travel-related entities including their favorite foreign and domestic airlines, rental car companies, destinations and luggage. More than 4,200 readers participated in the survey with 83 percent indicating that they would travel the same amount or more during the next year. According to SkyGuide, its readers take an average of 50 trips a year, 42 for business and eight for leisure, and represent some of the most frequent business travelers.