Tampa Bay airports fare well as complaints rise nationally
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Tampa Bay Airports have once again proved superior.
Why it matters: Air passengers are reporting complaints at a higher rate in recent years compared to before the pandemic, according to new data compiled by the Data Liberation Project.
- The TSA PreCheck program is the most common target of complaints, followed by issues with customer service and screening.
Yes, but: Tampa Bay's airports have fairly low complaint rates.
Zoom in: Travelers filed 14.8 complaints per 100,000 passengers at TPA in January compared to a rate of 6.3 during the same month in 2019.
- The national rate went from 13 to 17.
The big picture: Among airports with at least one million passengers in 2023, St. Pete-Clearwater International ranked third in the nation for airports with the least complaints relative to passenger volume.
- PIE had 9.37 complaints per 100,000 passengers.
- Sarasota Tampa International Airport had a rate of 16.62.
- Newark Liberty International had the nation's highest complaint rate at 36.2.
Flashback: TPA ranked the highest in customer satisfaction among large airports in JD Power's 2022 North America Airport Satisfaction Study — the same year overall customer satisfaction with North American airports fell.
The bottom line: Florida will always be better than New Jersey.