Operating airlines is a tough business—the costs are huge and customers finicky, to begin with. One would imagine advances in technology and increasing competition would make airlines’ customer engagement as much post-sales friendly as they are pre-sales. Not so. While all that has ensured great prices—yes, sometimes unbelievably low, too—it hasn’t yet created a 360-degree delight for the consumer. A key missing element of the puzzle is their cancellation and refund policy that continues to fleece fliers, the government’s promises to correct this notwithstanding. Some days ago, India’s second-largest airline, Jet Airways, announced a “guest-friendly framework”. The airline, which is struggling to stay in the sky, said this would lower penalties in exchange for advance intimation for changes in bookings. The new cancellation policy is anything but guest-friendly.
