| Fliers happier with service, still irked by fees and Las Vegas to lose No. 2 gambling spot to Singapore |
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For the second year in a row, satisfaction with airline service is up, but with two exceptions. NBC's Chris Clackum reports.While travelers remain irritated by extra fees for bags, meals, priority boarding and other services, a new survey shows overall customer satisfaction with airlines is on the rise.The just-released J.D. Power and Associates 2011 North America Airline Satisfaction Study surveyed more than 13,500 passengers and found that overall satisfaction improved to an average of 683 on a 1,000-point scale, up 10 points from 2010.There are some familiar faces at the top of the list: Alaska Airlines ranked highest among traditional carriers for the fourth consecutive year; JetBlue topped the low-cost segment for the sixth straight year.Satisfaction with low-cost carriers is at a five-year high (751 on the 1,000-point scale), but traditional carriers lost some ground. [Read the full article] A man in Spain allegedly stuffed himself into a suitcase in order to steal valuables from other passengers' luggage on an airport shuttle bus, the BBC reports.On Friday, a bus company employee noticed a passenger struggling to put a heavy suitcase into the luggage hold and notified authorities. The shuttle service had previously alerted police to a string of thefts aboard its buses.Police officers noticed the suspicious suitcase was warm, so they opened it. Inside, they found the alleged thief doubled up like a contortionist and dripping with sweat. The man was also found with a head lamp, a sharp tool that police believe was used to open zippers and locks, a small bag and a cell phone. "Once the trip began, he would get out of the suitcase, search for valuable objects and hide them in a smaller bag he carried with him," regional Catalan police told the AFP news agency. [Read the full article] Delta Airlines came under withering criticism on Wednesday for charging some American soldiers returning from Afghanistan nearly $3,000 in baggage fees. NBC's Tom Costello reports.Delta Air Lines announced Wednesday that it will now allow active duty soldiers traveling under orders to check four bags for free when flying coach.The carrier changed its policy after being widely criticized for charging a unit of U.S. soldiers returning from Afghanistan $2,800 in extra bag fees.The soldiers' military orders authorize them to travel with up to four bags. But at the check-in counter at the Baltimore airport on Tuesday, they discovered that while Delta allows active duty military personnel traveling on orders to check up to four bags for free if they are traveling in first/business class, the limit is only three bags for soldiers traveling in coach. [Read the full article] 
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