Attention all passengers : the airlines' dangerous descent -- and how to reclaim our skies

A Fast Food Nation for the airline industry, Attention All Passengers is a shocking and important exposé revealing the real state of the “friendly skies” in which we fly. Award-winning Consumer Reports travel journalist William McGee, a former editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, spent nearly seven years in airline flight operations management, and what he learned was less than uplifting. From TSA power grabs and an endemic lack of oversight to legislative battles and lobbying boondoggles to antiquated flight patterns and outsourced maintenance workers, the airlines and the Government are in cahoots, conspiring to turn a profit any way they can, no matter who has to pay the price. A provocative and hard-hitting call to action, Attention All Passengers will explode all our previous misconceptions about the airline industry....M.F Award-winning journalist and leading consumer advocate William J. McGee offers a shocking, essential expose that reveals the real state of the "friendly skies."From outsourced call centers in India to the Alabama location where all lost baggage ends up, William J. McGee crisscrossed the country and traveled around the globe immersing himself deep into the world of commercial airlines. And what he found was shocking. McGee interviewed countless industry insiders--pilots, TSA security screeners, FAA inspectors, legislators, the CEOs of the major carriers, and even Ralph Nader and Steven Slater, the disgruntled flight attendant who famously jettisoned a JetBlue flight. Here he reveals how airline executives are cutting costs in "a mad race to the bottom" by delegating flights to second-tier regional airlines and outsourcing critical aircraft maintenance and repairs to unlicensed "mechanics" in China, Singapore, Mexico, and El Salvador. And while the U.S. airlines have raked in tens of billions of dollars for checked baggage alone in recent years, our skies (and our airports) are not getting any safer. What's more, McGee explains how both political parties and all branches of the U.S. government have conspired to place corporate interests above the interests of consumers, workers, the nation's economy, and even the planet itself. Attention All Passengers will change the way you view the airline industry and make you think twice the next time you see the fasten seat belts sign Journalist and consumer advocate William J. McGee offers an exposé on the "friendly skies." From outsourced call centers in India to the Alabama location where all lost baggage ends up, McGee traveled around the globe immersing himself deep into the world of commercial airlines. He interviewed countless industry insiders--pilots, TSA security screeners, FAA inspectors, legislators, the CEOs of the major carriers, Ralph Nader, and even the disgruntled flight attendant who famously jettisoned a JetBlue flight. He reveals how airline executives are cutting costs in "a mad race to the bottom" by delegating flights to second-tier regional airlines and outsourcing critical aircraft maintenance and repairs to unlicensed "mechanics" offshore. And while the U.S. airlines have raked in tens of billions of dollars for checked baggage alone in recent years, our skies (and our airports) are not getting any safer. What's more, McGee explains how all branches of the U.S. government have conspired to place corporate interests above the interests of consumers, workers, the nation's economy, and even the planet itself.--From publisher description Sit Down And Shut Up Or We'll Turn This Plane Around : Why Airline Service Has Collapsed And Air Rage Is Soaring -- What Happened To The Airlines? -- Collusion And Confusion : How Airlines Don't Play By The Rules, And How Passengers Pay -- So You Think You've Found The Lowest Fare -- A Mad Race To The Bottom : How Airlines Mistreat Employees, Outsource, And Ignore Passengers -- When Your Airline Isn't Your Airline : Regional Carriers Provide Lower Levels Of Service And Safety -- Outrageous Outsourcing : The Single Greatest Threat To Airline Safety -- Unsafe At Any Altitude? : Facing Unprecedented Dangers -- Threats To Survival : Why Many Air Crashes Need Not Be Fatal -- Lights, Camera, Strip Search : The Tragicomedy Of Airline Security -- Cloudy Skies : Aviation's Carbon Footprint -- Ink-stained Wreckage : How Airlines Manipulate The Media. William J. Mcgee. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 319-335) And Index. A Fast Food Nation for the airline industry, Attention All Passengers is a shocking and important expos#233; revealing the real state of the "friendly skies" in which we fly. Award-winning Consumer Reports travel journalist William McGee, a former editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, spent nearly seven years in airline flight operations management, and what he learned was less than uplifting. From TSA power grabs and an endemic lack of oversight to legislative battles and lobbying boondoggles to antiquated flight patterns and outsourced maintenance workers, the airlines and the Government are in cahoots, conspiring to turn a profit any way they can, no matter who has to pay the price. A provocative and hard-hitting call to action, Attention All Passengers will explode all our previous misconceptions about the airline industry