Despite record passenger volumes, an ongoing pilot and air traffic controller shortage that has affected flight availability, and multiple weather delays and cancellations, overall North American airport satisfaction improved this past year, albeit slightly, according to J.D. Power.
Overall airport satisfaction increased three points year over year to 780 on an ascending 1,000-point scale in the J.D. Power 2023 North America Airport Satisfaction Study, released Wednesday. That’s a significant improvement over last year’s 25-point drop.
“It has not been an easy year for North American airports, but major capital improvements they’ve made over the last several years and new investments in getting food, beverage and retail operations back up and running at full capacity have helped them manage the crush of passengers,” J.D. Power managing director of travel, hospitality and retail Michael Taylor said in a statement.
The survey measures overall traveler satisfaction with North American airports. It examines six factors, in order of importance: terminal facilities, airport arrival/departure, baggage claim, security check, check-in/baggage check, and food, beverage and retail.
J.D. Power also classified airports as mega, large and medium. Mega airports have 33 million or more passengers per year, large airports have 10 million to 32.9 million passengers, and medium airports have 4.5 million to 9.9 million.
Top Airport Performers
The mega category segment average was 772 compared with 769 last year. The top three ranked airports were Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport with a score of 800, Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (796) and Harry Reid International Airport outside Las Vegas (787). Newark Liberty International Airport came in last with a score of 732.
Tampa International Airport with a score of 832 took top honors for large airports for the second year in a row. It was followed by John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif. (829) and Salt Lake City International Airport (825). Philadelphia International Airport came in last for the second year in a row with a score of 750, an improvement of last year’s 729. The segment average was 789, up from 784 in 2022.
The top three medium-sized airports were Indianapolis International Airport, which came in first for the second year in a row with a score of 843, Southwest Florida International Airport (839) and Ontario International Airport in Southern California (834). Kahului Airport in Maui was last with a score of 771. The segment average was 809 compared with 807 last year.
Key Trends
The best performing airports all saw substantial gains in terminal facilities, food and beverage and retail service, and baggage claim, according to J.D. Power. Those facilities with recently completed construction projects also saw improved scores, such as LaGuardia Airport. After coming in last in 2019 in the large airport category and 24th last year with a score of 761, this year LaGuardia moved up to 14th place with a score of 788, just one point shy of the segment average.
Still, J.D. Power anticipates that crowding will remain a challenge “for the foreseeable future.” Overall passenger satisfaction remains down from the highs seen in 2020, when passenger volumes plummeted because of the pandemic. About 60 percent of respondents said they experienced severe or moderate crowding within the terminal, a 2 percentage-point increase from last year.
The 2023 North America Airport Satisfaction Study is based on 27,147 responses from U.S. or Canadian residents who traveled through at least one U.S. or Canadian airport in the prior 30 days and covers both departure and arrival experiences. The study was fielded from August 2022 through July 2023.
J.D. Power: North American Airport Satisfaction Drops 25 Points