Customer Service Gains Unlikely in Airline Merger

However, compared with Northwest, what's the customer experience on Delta, which will become Detroit's main air carrier if the merger between the two is approved?

"The only two bonuses I see are snacks on long flights when you're in coach and Coke products instead of Pepsi," said Lisa Gilpin of Berkley, Mich., who flies both airlines. "I do think getting some food on four- or five-hour flights makes a big positive difference. It's hard to warm up to the SmartSnacks Northwest sells when it's basically expensive junk food."

Familiarity Breeds Contempt?

Few Detroit passengers have extensive experience flying Delta, because it flies only to four cities from Detroit Metro Airport. However, residents of Georgia, Delta's main hub, know the airline's good and bad points well.

"In general, it seems to me that Northwest's service is better -- the food, the flight attendants. Maybe because I travel business class, but Northwest is nicer in business class than Delta is even in first class," said Mike Shamus of Alpharetta, Ga., who has flown more than 2 million miles on Delta in the last 20 years.

"I do really like the Delta SkyMiles frequent-flier program," said Shamus, who is platinum elite. "It is a good program. It does let you get free tickets."

Like the Northwest World Perks Miles Visa card, Delta offers the Delta SkyMiles American Express card, where travelers get 1 mile for every dollar they spend. A merged airline would likely issue a new card to holders.

Like Northwest, Delta's Medallion program grants elite status after 25,000 miles in a year -- but Northwest also lets people get to elite status by flying a certain number of flight segments. Rules of any merged program are not yet set, a Delta spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Delta has the top on-time arrival record of all large carriers -- about 77 percent in 2007, compared with Northwest's 70 percent.

Bigger Ain't Better

Yet Delta gets more complaints. It is also more likely to bump you off a flight or lose your luggage, federal data show.

"Delta was better 15 years ago," Shamus said. "Maybe it was because they weren't as big."

Like Northwest planes, the Delta fleet is a combination of new planes and aging ones.

"My only recent experience with Delta fills me with anticipatory dread of my next flight through Japan," Kelly Fitzpatrick, a former Detroiter who lives in Guam, said via e-mail Tuesday. "The plane from Honolulu to San Francisco was a narrow-body, the seats were worn, seemingly none of the amenities were in correct working order and the flight attendants ranged from disengaged to surly. Other than that, it was great."

Customers Lose in Mergers

Mergers and acquisitions usually lead to lower levels of customer satisfaction, not higher, said Claes Fornell, founder of University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index project. He voiced skepticism of the Northwest-Delta venture in terms of improving customer service .

"These two airlines are coming together, but two negatives don't make a positive," he said Tuesday while waiting for a Northwest flight from New York's LaGuardia to Detroit.

ACSI's data released in 2007 showed Northwest with a 61 rating and Delta with a 59 rating of customer satisfaction on a 100-point scale. The average for the industry was 63.

Says Who?

Theoretically, a financially healthy airline has better customer service, and that's the goal with the merger, Northwest CEO Doug Steenland told reporters at a news conference Tuesday.

"The goal here is to create a more secure business so the airline is better able to invest in product enhancements and employee training," he said.

Translation: If you're solvent, you can give customers things like peanuts and pillows, and you can afford to hire and keep the most competent and positive workforce.

If that happens, it will be a nice surprise to the merged Delta-Northwest customers.

And not much to complain about.