亚洲航空公司为何远好于美国同行？
今
年我从曼谷搬到了北京，这或许减少了我到纽约去的飞行时间，但也迫使我不得不重新和美国的航空公司打交道，而过去这十几年来我一直坐的是亚洲优质航空公司的航班。最近一次去纽约看望家人和朋友时，一开始我发现有家美国航空公司有从北京到纽瓦克国际机场(Newark International Airport)的直飞航班时很是高兴。机票的价格比较合理，航班的时间安排也非常合适。得在飞机上呆13个小时？没问题，正好可以利用这段时间补看本•斯蒂勒(Ben Stiller)的电影全集。
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亚洲航空公司为何远好于美国？
在服务和便利设施方面，美国的航空公司远远落后于亚洲同行，这已经不是什么秘密。在航空业咨询公司Skytrax于今年夏季发布的全球最佳航空公司年度调查中，美国的三大航空公司──达美航空(Delta Airlines)、联合航空(United Airlines)以及美国航空 (American Airlines)──无一闯入50强。（这份榜单也有让人诟病的地方，而且它还有一些荒谬的歪曲之处，例如排名高于联合航空的航空公司中竟有哈萨克斯坦的阿斯塔纳航空公司(Air Astana)与巴拿马的旗舰航空公司巴拿马航空(Copa Airlines)。）
与此同时，排名前十的航空公司中有六家是亚洲公司，其中韩亚航空公司(Asiana Airlines)高居第二，其次是新加坡航空公司(Singapore Airlines)、国泰航空(Cathay Pacific)和全日空航空(All Nippon Airlines)，就连中国几家大型航空公司的表现也要好于美国的三大航空公司。
那么，为什么亚洲的航空公司普遍要好这么多呢？美国航空公司的水准为什么会下降到这么低的程度？
这些差异源于以往的历史。自上世纪70年代末解除航空管制以来，美国的三大航空公司一直受困于"历史遗留问题"──这个行业术语用以指那些累计起来将拉高成本的员工年纪趋长、薪酬上涨、养老金和工会集体合同等问题。这三家航空公司在过去十年都宣布过破产。
相对而言，亚洲的航空公司不仅没有受到这些问题的阻碍，它们还从该地区旅客流量的显著增长中获益。近几年，亚洲航空公司所获的利润占到该行业总利润的一半，这些收益也被精明地重新投入到购买新飞机、先进的座椅与创新的娱乐系统上。即使是中国的航空公司也发生了显著的改进，在该地区的购机狂潮中一马当先。亚太航空中心(Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation)分析师布兰登•索比(Brendan Sobie)对我说道，"（亚洲航空公司）时常会思考六七年以后的事情，而且他们也有钱投资。"
悲观主义者也许会想亚洲航空公司的优势能够保持多长时间，特别是在当今廉价航班市场逐渐兴起的背景之下。国泰航空与新加坡航空近期也公布发生亏损，这表明它们并不能免受全球经济疲软与燃油价格上涨的影响。与此同时，可运载数万人出行的低成本航空公司也在重塑亚洲旅游业的格局。
有些人指出，廉价航空公司的爆炸式增长会是亚洲一流航空公司末日的开始。但是，仔细地推究一下谁是这些新兴航空公司背后的支持者，你便会发现一些熟悉的名字：Scoot是新加坡航空的子公司，Thai Smile由泰国航空(Thai Airways)创立，而捷星日本(Jetstar Japan)背后的金主则是日本航空公司(Japan Airlines Corp.)。
这个双面出击的策略让亚洲的航空公司在迅速扩张、大体以亚洲地区短途航程为主的廉价航空市场占得了一席之地，同时使得他们得以保持其一线品牌的水准，特别是长途航班的水准。位于吉隆坡的亚太航空公司协会(Association of Asia Pacific Airlines)的理事长安德鲁•赫德曼(Andrew Herdman)称，全球范围内廉价航空公司所搭载乘客的数量可能占到总数的25%左右，但是它们的营收只占全球总营收的10%。
不过，也有一项调查是美国的航空公司打败了亚洲同行。近期的一项研究显示，各航空公司在去年狂收了182.3亿欧元的附加费用，即对托运行李、食品饮料、使用枕头和毯子收取的那些恼人费用。该项调查中并未提及亚洲任何一家提供全面服务的航空公司。
Jennifer Chen
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Why Asian Airlines Reign Supreme
On a recent trip to New York to see family and friends, I was at first pleased to discover that a U.S. carrier had a direct flight from Beijing to Newark International Airport. The fare was reasonable and the schedule suited me perfectly. Thirteen hours on a plane? Perfect time to catch up on Ben Stiller's oeuvre.
Less than an hour into the flight, I was regretting my choice. Flying coach, I expected uncomfortable seats, lackluster food and surly service, but what I hadn't counted on was being turned away from the toilet. As I reached out to open the door, a flight attendant preparing a drinks cart two feet away barked, 'You can't go in there. I'm busy. Go to the one in the front.' When the other toilets turned out to be occupied, I turned back to discover the occupied sign was on. 'I'm not letting you in,' the flight attendant insisted.
It's no secret that American carriers lag far behind their Asian counterparts when it comes to service and amenities. None of the big three U.S. airlines 岸 Delta Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines 岸 cracked the top 50 in airline consultancy Skytrax's annual poll of the world's best airlines, which was released this summer. (The list has its detractors, and it does take some absurd twists: among the airlines that topped United, for instance, were Kazakhstan's Air Astana and Panama's flag carrier Copa Airlines.)
Meanwhile, six of the top 10 carriers hailed from Asia, with Asiana earning second place, followed by Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific and All Nippon Airlines. Even China's big carriers fared better than the American big three.
Why are Asian airlines generally so much better? And why have the standards on U.S. airlines fallen so low?
The differences lie in history. Since airline deregulation in the late 1970's, America's big three have struggled with 'legacy issues'岸an industry term for older workforces, higher salaries, pensions and union contracts that all add up to higher costs. All three have declared bankruptcy in the past decade.
Not only are Asian airlines relatively unhampered by these issues, but they're also blessed by the fact that their region is seeing phenomenal growth in passenger traffic. Asian airlines in recent years have accounted for half of total industry profits. And those earnings are wisely reinvested into newer planes, cutting-edge seats and innovative entertainment systems. Even Chinese airlines are noticeably improving, leading a regional buying spree of planes. '[Asian airlines] are constantly thinking six or seven years ahead, and they have the money to invest,' Brendan Sobie, an analyst with the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation, told me.
Pessimists may wonder how long Asian airlines can maintain their edge, especially amid a booming budget carrier market. Recently reported losses at Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines show they're not immune to a sluggish global economy and increasing fuel prices. At the same time, low-cost carriers are remaking the Asian travel sector, allowing tens of thousands of people to fly.
Some point at the explosion of budget airlines as the beginning of the end for the region's premier airlines. But take a closer look at who's in the cockpit of these upstarts and you'll find familiar names: Scoot is courtesy of Singapore Airlines, Thai Smile stems from Thai Airways, and Japan Airlines Corp. is bankrolling Jetstar Japan.
That double-pronged strategy gives Asia's airlines a foothold in the rapidly expanding budget market, which is mostly focused on hops around the region, while allowing them to maintain the standards of their premium brands, especially on long-haul flights. Budget airlines may account for around 25 percent of global passenger numbers, said Andrew Herdman, director of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines in Kuala Lumpur, but they still only make up 10 percent of total revenues.
There is one survey where American airlines beat Asia carriers. A recent study showed airlines raked in 18.23 billion euros last year in ancillary charges岸those annoying fees for checked baggage, food, drink, pillows and blankets. Not a single Asian full-service carrier was mentioned.
NEXT: Stay tuned for advice on surviving long-haul flights on a U.S. airline.
(Travel Well is Jennifer Chen's column for Scene covering travel tips and trends in Asia. Got an Asia travel question? Send it to scene@wsj.com with the subject line 'Travel Well.'
Jennifer Chen
(Jennifer writes about travel, food and culture. A native New Englander, she's lived in Taipei, Singapore and Bangkok, and is currently navigating Beijing. Her favorite place in the world is Brooklyn, though it would be better with Thai street food.)
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