Worst Airlines To Use

Traveling via plane sucks. It's become a staple statement among comedians who are just sick of having to deal with packing peanuts as a "gourmet meal" or people who have dealt with stewardesses who seem to have a legit problem with the self-loading cargo (you) asking for water.

The airline industry, as a whole, is known for being incredibly terrible in terms of customer service. Being able to say that you're the worst of the worst is pretty impressive - but not in a good way.

You'd almost have to think that the people who run these airlines may be going out of their way to give people the worst travel experience ever. Recently, studies have come out talking about the worst airlines to use in the world. Here's the final verdict, ranked by us.

US Airways

Only marginally better is the much-hated United, an airline that has gained a very solid reputation for being late, losing luggage, and just being absolutely abhorrent to their customers. Along with a number of PR scandals involving social media outbursts from customer service reps, US Airways also has come under fire for being high priced and highly uncomfortable.

That being said, around one of every four flights by this chain will end up being late and 2 bags of every 1,000 will be lost. If you're not worried about being on time, this is a good route.

United Airlines

For the most part, United Airlines seems to score relatively well among travelers, primarily because of the fact that they seem to score mediocre in most fields. They're affordable, they're cramped, but they don't delay flights too often.

That being said, the bad press really does highlight a lot of problems that the airline is facing in terms of customer service. After all, you know it has to be bad when their own representatives refuse to apologize for beating up someone or killing a bunny.

Tigerair

This Asian airline company was originally started as a super-budget form of airline, much like the UK's Ryanair. It also was known as Tiger Airlines at the time.

However, the company's ability to keep prices low was maintained by cutting the corners on just about every amenity possible. So, cramped room, poor maintenance, and exceptionally bad customer service became the norm. Oh, and anything even remotely close to standard will require you to pay an additional fee.

In a bid to get rid of the bad reviews associated with the company, Tiger Airlines rebranded itself as Tigerair... only to keep the same business model that screwed them over before.

Pakistan International Airlines

PIA, as it's often called, is somewhat of a joke in the airline industry. According to data provided by the airline itself, only 37 percent of Pakistan International Airlines flights actually arrive on time. Along with one of the most abysmal records for timeliness, Pakistan International Airlines also has a 2.5 star rating in fields like passenger assistance, onboarding, and prices.

If you ask us, this is probably an airline you should avoid.

Ryanair

In Europe, almost every single "worst passenger experience" story you'll hear comes from ultra-budget Ryanair. This Ireland-based airline has become famous for charging mothers extra just to have their children sit on their laps, removing bathrooms in exchange for more seats, and even having bad customer service reps as way of cutting corners.

Most people in Europe would say this is the worst airline ever, simply because they treat passengers like self-loading cargo. Sure, you could save a couple hundred bucks by flying Ryanair, but would you really want to at this point?

Spirit Airlines

Oh, Spirit Airlines...

Spirit Airlines has, to a point, become synonymous with really terrible stuff. They are infamous for bad customer service, long delays, and of course, a lot of lost baggage. As bad as it is, people still choose to use Spirit Airlines because it's super cheap.

The strange thing about Spirit is that you never really hear about major gaffes on the news. However, the conglomerate data from angry customers tends to say more than a headline ever could.

Lion Air

This Southeast Asian company has gotten a reputation among longtime travelers as one of the worst airlines to use in the world. Chronic delays are the norm, and the occasional lost luggage claim still does happen. Even so, those could be forgiven. What makes booking a trip through Lion Air one of the worst is the fact that this isn't even safe.

Multiple headlines have come out discussing the rampant drug use of the pilots, including one who was arrested for being under the influence of methamphetamine only hours before he was expected to fly. With most airlines flight safety is number one; with Lion Air, this is clearly just not the case.

Nepal Airlines

This airline has one of the worst track records in terms of delays and cancellations, with a very large portion of the airline's flights being suddenly cancelled within only minutes of the assumed takeoff.

Because of how faulty the airline's track record is, Nepal Airlines has been banned from flying in the EU since 2013. Should a Nepal Airlines flight get cancelled, there's no saying that every airline customer who was supposed to board that flight will actually get a refund, either.

Bulgaria Air

Flying on budget airline Bulgaria Air is a lot like playing Russian Roulette with your life. Since its inception in 2002, Bulgaria Air has gotten a reputation for being one of the worst airlines to use in the world. The airline's worst claim to fame would have to be the multiple occasions where runway skidding, sudden plane breakdown, and mid-air issues caused by a lack of maintenance caused serious safety concerns.

Between the terrible customer service, the massive delays, and the fact that there's not enough safety documentation to allay official fears, Bulgaria Air is not allowed to fly in American airspace.

SCAT Airlines

No, we're not making up the name.

This Kazakhstani airline company has gotten a solid reputation for being one of the worst airlines to use in the world, with many calling their customer service experience "inhuman." Along with incredibly rude staff members, this entire airline company has become cited for major safety issues, lethal crashes, and more.

As of right now, multiple countries and federations, including the EU, are working on banning SCAT airlines from flying in their zones. As a result, passenger flight experiences are probably limited to Russia.