Northwest Airlines Congratulates Its 55,000 Employees For The First Six Months Of "Customers First" Implementation

Customer Service Plan Providing Significant Benefits for Travelers

Northwest Airlines today issued a company-wide congratulatory message to its 55,000 employees for their hard work, dedication and commitment to implementing the carrier's Customers First service plan, which was launched on December 15, 1999.

"Our policies, procedures and new service initiatives are only as good as the people we have to deliver them," said Northwest President and Chief Executive Officer John Dasburg. "At Northwest we have the best people in the industry and we're very proud of the way they have risen to the challenge to make sure we meet our Customers First commitments."

Northwest's Customers First service plan, which includes 12 commitments (see listing at the end of the release), have been backed by Northwest's solid operational performance, including consistent top or near top rankings among the major network carriers in on-time performance, in involuntary denied boarding and mishandled luggage claims as measured by the Department of Transportation.

Northwest also introduced industry leading customer service enhancements including Northwest's Customer Rebook Hotline, Portable Agent Workstations (PAWS), Internet check-in capability, and the industry's only compensation packet for delayed luggage, as well as an introduction of more than $23 million in domestic food enhancements and an additional $11 million food enhancement for World Business Class on international fights.

"Our Customers First commitments provide the underlying foundation on which all of our service and product enhancements, employee training and communications programs are now being built," said Richard Anderson, Northwest Airlines executive vice president and chief operating officer. "In practical terms that means the design and implementation of any Northwest program is first measured in terms of how it either helps us meet, exceed or expand the service commitments we've made through our Customers First program."

Northwest's Customers First related initiatives include:

•  Northwest's Customer Guide: (hardcopy available at airport and city ticket counters and from travel agencies and an expanded on-line version available at www.nwa.com) walks a passenger through a typical travel experience laying out NWA commitments, policies and advice on what our customers can and should do for a better travel experience.


•  World Traveler Customers First section: This two page section in Northwest's onboard publication began with the May 2000 issue and features an explanation of the Customers First service commitments, excerpts from the Customer Guide, a quote from the Chief Operating Officer emphasizing how Northwest will fulfill its commitments and photos of some of the recent service and product enhancements.


•  Customers with Disabilities Advisory Board: This new ten-member advisory board, with members representing different disabilities from local and national disability and advocacy organizations, convened in December 1999 with the express purpose of providing input and feedback from the disability community on how Northwest can improve accessibility and customer service for passengers with disabilities. Board members serve one-year terms and meet quarterly to review Northwest's existing and proposed policies and procedures as well as training programs related to services for passengers with disabilities.


•  Luggage Service Recovery Kits: Northwest is the first airline to provide customers with a service recovery packet when their luggage is delayed. The packet contains a dollars-off voucher for future travel of at least $25, an apology letter and a comment card.


•  Service Recovery Packets: Are provided to customers if Northwest is responsible for a two to four hour delay or a canceled flight, or in instances of a four hour delay beyond Northwest's control. Domestic and International versions contain a phone card, an amenity coupon for Northwest WorldPerks miles, a meal in the airport, or a beverage or headset on board the aircraft, and a travel discount certificate valid toward the purchase of future travel.


•  Catch the Spirit: A new training program for Northwest's 14,000 ground operations employees emphasizes meeting customers needs through better communications techniques, inter-work group coordination and focus on meeting our Customers First commitments. Each employee receives 65 hours of training.


•  Customer Rebook Hotline and Portable Agent Workstations: Northwest’s Rebook Hotline is a portable bank of phones that can be wheeled directly to a gate if a flight is cancelled or connections are missed. A customer who picks up the Rebook Hotline automatically becomes the top priority with reservations agents, and has his or her call answered within seconds. Nearly 13,000 passengers have used the Rebook Hotline since its installation in December 1999. During the week of June 13, the average wait time for an agent was 8 seconds, with the maximum wait time of 120 seconds.
Northwest ticket agents in Minneapolis/St. Paul and Detroit are using Portable Agent Workstations (PAWs), a hand-held personal computer similar to those used by rental car companies, to help customers bypass waiting in long lines for the next available ticket agent. With the PAWs, agents can check in customers and give them their boarding passes. Northwest is the only major airline to have the hand-held devices, which have been used by nearly 14,000 passengers since their introduction in December 1999.



•  Internet Check In Designed to keep lines short, Northwest will be the first major network carrier to launch Internet check-in, which allows customers to complete their entire check-in process — including printing boarding passes — directly from their PCs. Customers not checking luggage can go to nwa.com and enter either a major credit card number, a flight confirmation number, or their WorldPerks number to access the check-in. From there, they can change their seat assignment, upgrade themselves (if fare and space allows), confirm their seat, print out their boarding pass directly from their PC, bypass all check-in lines at the airport, and go directly to the boarding agent. The agent will scan the bar code on the boarding pass and ask the customer for ID. Northwest began testing this new technology with a small number of corporate clients in March. Additional corporate clients will be added to the test group later this year and Northwest expects a full rollout to all customers by early 2001.
Included in Northwest's Customers First commitments are:

1.  Offering the lowest fare available for which the customer is eligible.
2.  Notifying customers of known delays, cancellations and diversions.

3.  Making every reasonable effort to return checked luggage within 24 hours.

4.  Supporting the increase in the luggage liability limit to $2,500 from $1,250.

5.  Allowing reservation to be cancelled without penalty for 24 hours.

6.  Issuing refunds for eligible tickets within seven days for credit card purchases and 20 days for cash purchases.

7.  Properly accommodating disabled and special needs passengers.

8.  Meeting customers' essential needs during long on-aircraft delays.

9.  Handling bumped passengers with fairness and consistency.

10.  Disclosing cancellation policies, frequent flier rules and cabin configurations.

11.  Ensuring code share partners make similar commitments to customer service programs.

12.  Being more responsive to customer complaints and providing written responses within 60 days.
Northwest Airlines is the world’s fourth largest airline offering more than 2,600 daily departures with hubs at Detroit, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, Tokyo and Amsterdam. With its travel partners, Northwest serves more than 750 cities in more than 120 countries on 6 continents. Northwest and partner KLM Royal Dutch Airlines received Air Transport World’s prestigious “1997 Airline of the Year” award and, based on statistics compiled by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Northwest was the most on-time U.S. airline among the seven largest network carriers for the period 1990-1999. Northwest is the 2000 recipient of Air Transport World Airline Technology Management Award. Northwest’s WorldPerks frequent flyer program is the highest rated U.S.-based program reviewed by InsideFlyer Magazine, the leading authority on airline free travel programs, and in 1999 was named the most preferred frequent flyer program by the readers of Time in Asia. WorldPerks received the special “Industry Impact Award” during InsideFlyer’s 12th Annual Freddie Awards. In 1999, Northwest’s nwa.com was chosen as best airline web site by zdNews.com and Business 2.0 and was named one of the top 500 sites by Internet World magazine.