Airline Customer Complaints During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Case of Turkey-Based Airlines

Gidener N. G., Morcote Santos I. C.

in: Challenges and Opportunities for Transportation Services in the Post-COVID-19 Era, Giuseppe Catenazzo, Editor, IGI GLOBAL, Nancy, pp.155-175, 2022

  • Publication Type: Book Chapter / Chapter Research Book
  • Publication Date: 2022
  • Publisher: IGI GLOBAL
  • City: Nancy
  • Page Numbers: pp.155-175
  • Editors: Giuseppe Catenazzo, Editor
  • Dokuz Eylül University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

The unforeseen emerge of COVID-19 pandemic back in March 2020 made a huge impact both nationally and internationally in Turkey. One of the impacts of this disaster was on transportation services both for goods and passengers. Therefore, the focus of this study was determined to be on airline passengers’ satisfaction and complaints in this bothersome period. The aim was to discover the problematic dimensions of the service provided and possibly minimize these incidents both for the sake of the airline companies and the passengers. The content analysis method was utilized and 125 reviews containing 280 complaints were analyzed. It was discovered that the most criticized SERVQUAL dimension for Turkey based airlines in the first year of COVID-19 pandemic was reliability. These findings have the potential to guide professionals of passengers’ transportation services on which practices should be improved. 

 

Keywords: Service Failure, Customer Complaints, Airline Service Quality, Service Marketing, Covid-19