Richard Gritta, a finance professor at the University of Portland in Oregon who studies airlines, said the industry's financial problems and immense job cuts helped the Teamsters.
"I would think the more transparent airlines are, the higher esteem in which they're held," said Mr. Morrison, who has studied airline pricing.
In conjunction with the new feature, Hopper also released the results of a study on airlines' hidden fees, which details the average prices for various amenities and options.
For example, the route from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Los Angeles International Airport was served in 2007 by three "effective competitors," defined in the study as airlines with at least a 5% share of the overall market.
While passengers focus primarily on comfort, a 2001 safety board study of airline accidents showed that improvement in safety design was having a positive effect.
For example, in one study an airline management company decided to change their staff dress code to a casual uniform, khakis and T-shirts, in place of the usual formal suit.
"You won't leave on time; you won't get there on time," said Dean Headley, associate professor of marketing at Wichita State University and co-author of an annual study of airline quality.
I'm sure his phone melted down right after Christmas, but a professor of management at Northwestern University who studies the airlines said it best: "We are deregulated, remember?" Imagine sending in the feds to snoop around the halls of General Motors because it recalled a poorly designed part.
For example, an increased injury incidence rate was reported in a large study of airline luggage handlers who started and later discontinued wearing an abdominal belt [ 27].
A more recent study involving airline travelers estimated a positive predictive value of ITIS for fever detection of 0.9%4.1%% for detecting fever of any cause and a positive predictive value of fever for influenza of 2.0%2.8%% for detecting influenza-associated fever (3 ).
