t's not easy for travel agents to feel
sympathy for the U.S. airlines. The carriers began devaluing agents
nearly a decade ago, forcing many out of business and leaving
thousands of others struggling to survive.
Ironically, it's the airline industry that now is facing the
same fate. With few exceptions, the U.S. carriers are reeling
toward ruin, confronted with declining traffic and rising costs.
Two major carriers are operating in bankruptcy, and no one would be
surprised to see others follow.
It would be easy for agents to view the carriers' dilemma with
disdain, but that would disregard the pivotal role the airlines
play. A viable airline industry is necessary for the conduct of the
travel business, as well as many other industries that depend on
air transportation.
The airlines have renewed their appeal to Washington for
assistance in the form of tax holidays, terrorism insurance and
relief from the multibillion-dollar cost of added security.
They maintain that their staggering losses would grow far worse
if a war with Iraq drags on, causing Americans to stay away from
the skies for an indefinite period. They warn that without federal
help, the nation's air transportation system might collapse.
The government could do a great deal to mitigate the problem,
but should it step in and spend billions of taxpayer dollars in a
massive bailout?
Should Washington view the carriers as a quasi-utility that must
be protected or as a business that must deal with the same set of
circumstances facing other businesses?
No one wants to see one carrier after another fail. The airline
industry cannot be viewed in a vacuum. Without reliable air
service, the economy would be severely threatened.
But the answer may not lie in opening the U.S. treasury to
buttress a group of businesses that have failed to show they can be
depended upon to use the funds wisely and, thereby, be restored to
health.
Airline managements have followed practices that no longer are
acceptable in the post-9/11 era. They have continued to fly
money-losing routes at rates that could never achieve
profitability, and they have lost patronage from thousands of
formerly loyal retail distributors.
Some of their problems are the result of dealing with
intransigent work forces, but labor issues don't tell the whole
story. The carriers' stubborn dependence on archaic management
policies has just as much or more to do with their fortunes.
A federal bailout may seem an expedient solution for the
airlines' woes, but in the long-term it might be better to let the
marketplace act as the principal force in restructuring a
beleaguered industry.