This study provides a better understanding of the LCC passenger dissatisfaction phenomenon, as we now have an idea of which themes are important and require urgent attention. The findings show that over 10 years, the LCC passenger dissatisfaction criteria evolved, meaning that LCCs should be strongly aware of areas of concern in order to maintain passenger satisfaction. Based on classic data analytics, four themes – flight delay, ground staff attitude, luggage handling, and seat comfort – were identified as playing a crucial role in passenger dissatisfaction. Interestingly, LCC passengers were not found to have a problem with cabin crew attitude. Two possible reasons for the major themes of ground staff dissatisfaction may simply be that LCC ground staff lack training and that passengers expect ground staff to have the authority to make decisions and to be aware of passengers’ needs. Overall, when ground staff is not able to deal with passengers’ demands, passengers feel dissatisfied. In addition, the study found that the check-in counter, food, airline ground announcements, airline responses, cleanliness and additional/personal costs are secondary themes in passenger dissatisfaction. This study, therefore, clearly shows that LCCs should prioritize their efforts to minimize passenger dissatisfaction by firstly dealing with the primary themes of passenger dissatisfaction. [pdf, bib]
