J.D. Power announced on Dec. 15, that the Indianapolis International Airport (IND) has ranked highest in customer satisfaction among medium-sized airports in North America. The ranking is based on J.D. Power’s customer-satisfaction survey of more than 38,000 air travelers.
The study examines six factors associated with traveler satisfaction: terminal facilities, airport accessibility, security check, baggage claim, check-in/baggage check, food and beverage and retail amenities.
The study revealed many airports are adding a wider variety of food options, often with localized cuisine.
“Offering local flavor and local design elements unique to the area provide a ‘sense of place,’” said Michael Taylor, director of the airport practice at J.D. Power.
The Indy airport embodies this traveler preference, with concourses designed to be wide open, so passengers can move easily from shops and restaurants, including local eating establishments such as Café Patachou, Harry & Izzy’s, and Shapiro’s Deli and then onto their gates.
J.D. Power cited the Indy airport terminal ranked high for its open-space floor plan, spoke-and-wheel layout making gate access easy from any point in the airport, and its security check-in location and process – all elements that add up to a highly ranked customer experience.
“Customer satisfaction. It’s our ultimate metric,” said Mario Rodriguez, executive director of the Indianapolis Airport Authority. “The J.D. Power satisfaction survey is a powerful measurement of how we stack up in customer satisfaction. Every decision we make starts with customer satisfaction at the helm of our thinking, and from there everything else falls in line along the operational spectrum.”
“Indianapolis International Airport has become a frontrunner among airports in welcoming people from all over the world,” said Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett. “This achievement with the J.D. Power enterprise is another shining example how Hoosier hospitality is working for city and our state.”
The Indy airport’s overall satisfaction score ranked 794 on a 1,000-point scale, and received five out of five circles in J.D. Power’s Power Circle Rating from travelers.
“The J.D. Power study surveys a significant number of travelers on factors highly relevant to the airport experience,” said Kelly Flynn, president of the IAA board of directors. “Its research has been revered for decades, and its rankings are coveted across industries. To know how we measure up in this kind of study is highly valuable feedback, and to know we rank as we do, is most certainly an accolade to celebrate.”
The J.D. Power recognition is the latest in a long list of honors and awards travelers have bestowed on the Indianapolis International Airport in 2016. In October, the Indy airport earned the Condé Nast Traveler Readers’ Choice Awards for the third year in a row – in addition to the Best Airport in North America Award from Airports Council International North America for the fourth year in a row, the 2016 TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Favorite for U.S. Airports in the medium-size category, and finished strong in second place on the Travel + Leisure Magazine’s annual World’s Best Awards among U.S. domestic airports.
