Comparing Service Quality for Long-Haul Low-Cost Carriers – Case for Asia and Australia Routes

Abstract

ABSTRACTThe aim of this paper is to assess the service quality for long-haul low-cost carriers (LHLCCs) focusing on routes between Asia and Australia. The airlines selected for the purpose of this study are Scoot, Jetstar and Air Asia X. The research instruments used to measure the service quality for the case airlines are SERVPERF and Industry-based, of which the outcome of this study has illustrated that perceived service quality does not differ between the three carriers significantly. It shows that perceived service quality does not differ by gender, age, income level and seat class. With regards to SERVPERF dimensions, Asian passengers have assigned higher ratings as compared to other nationalities for Scoot. However, there are no differences for Jetstar and Air Asia X. Also, business travellers rank higher for Air Asia X with regards to the Industry-based dimensions. For Jetstar, passengers are happier travelling on economy class than on business class. Moreover, this study has shown that passengers ranked “Flight Schedule and Airfare” as the most important airline service attribute whereas, “Ground Service” ranked the least important. The quality of airline service does not have a positive effect on passenger satisfaction. However, customer satisfaction has a positive effect on passenger loyalty for LHLCCs. Hopefully, this research will enable the case airlines to gain insights on the quality of service they offer to their passengers. Furthermore, the assessment conducted for all three airlines will allow the airlines to benchmark themselves against each other as to how well they have performed. In turn, passengers can benefit from this research as they can gain enough information on the selected airlines to assist them in their future travel itineraries.