Scott Kirby believes United Airlines is the best airline in the world (he has for quite some time). I understand his argument, and there are aspects of United that compare favorably with just about any competitor. But the claim raises a more interesting question: what actually makes an airline the best? The answer depends on much more than the seat or the route map or any other single quality…and maybe that’s asking the wrong question anyway.
His argument is not that United serves the best food or offers the most luxurious seats. He acknowledges that Asian and Middle Eastern competitors do better on the physical product and probably service. He also identifies schedule as the primary reason people choose an airline. But he believes United’s technology changes the overall assessment:
“United, that’s why I now believe that United in totality is the best airline in the world, and it’s because of technology. It’s exponentially getting better. Things like being able to do this for customers when there’s a delay and tell them what’s going on. We started it this summer. AI allows us to institutionalize this. But if you’re going to have a delay, like sending customers weather radar maps. In Chicago, there was a day where the weather was over the horizon, but you had to fly. It was sunny at the airport, but you had to fly through this line of thunderstorms, and so the routes were closed. You couldn’t—
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on Live and Let's Fly.
