They
are creating their own no-fly zone. According
to
NBC News, some air passengers are simply avoiding Boeing-manufactured
planes.
With
the problems that Boeing has had in recent months, including the January 5
incident in which a door panel blew off an Alaska Airlines plane and subsequent
reports that the company is lax when it comes to safety protocols, some
potential air travelers are even rebooking flights just
to avoid flying on a Boeing jet.
That
is especially true of people who already have a fear of flying.
“I
just can’t step on that plane,” said Leila Amineddoleh, an art lawyer who lives
in Hoboken, New Jersey. “Even if the chance of getting hurt on a Boeing flight,
even with all these incidents, is slim.”
And
that creates a cascading effect in which the airplane manufacturer is losing
money, and so are the airlines and its contractors and so on. Like Amineddoleh,
some passengers are taking the personal precautionary measure of stepping on a
non-Boeing plane.
Which
usually means switching to an airline that utilizes planes from Airbus,
Boeing's main competitor. Even if it means it is more inconvenient and
costlier.
'Safety is More Important'
“It’s
an inconvenience,” she said, especially because she and her husband are
traveling with their young daughter. “But I’m not going to feel guilty, because
I think her safety is more important than fatigue.”
And
it isn’t just the door panel issue. Boeing planes have experienced several
other problems, including a plane that literally lost a tire upon takeoff. Those
issues have made the fear of flying real and filled with trepidation among some
folks. Adding to the fear has been federal scrutiny of the safety culture
at Boeing, along with the apparent suicide of a Boeing whistleblower.
Boeing
declined to comment. Others did not.
“The
good side is consumers are becoming more informed,” said Ed Pierson, a former
senior manager at Boeing’s 737 factory who is now executive director of the
nonprofit advocacy group The Foundation for Aviation Safety. “But here’s the
sad part: You shouldn’t have to be dealing with this.”
Travel
search engine Kayak, which offers the option to include or exclude certain
plane models from flight searches, said there has been a spike in people
seeking information about types of aircraft. Kayak CEO Steve Hafner said
in a statement that the use of the plane selection filter is 10 times higher than
it was in December.
As
much as 40 percent of people say they already have anxiety about flying.
Amineddoleh
said she hopes the fear of flying Boeing will soon dissipate.
“I
really do hope that things change at Boeing, in part because it really makes my
life easier,” she said. “When I fly to Europe, I always take direct flights.
It’s the first time in years that I haven’t.”
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