单选题
Americans are now flying the crowded, cranky skies. Flight delays in January were the worst for that month since 1999. Weather is always the primary cause of delays. Add to that the US Airways Christmas baggage meltdown and Comair's computer failure, the combination of which left hundreds of thousands of fliers stranded at airports. But airline employees see a deeper reason for both the increase in delays and passenger complaints: a demoralized and frustrated workforce that's being asked to do more even as it's getting paid lass. The airlines and unions are quick to praise their workers for rising to the challenge during these very difficult times, as well as for carrying the brunt of the cost cutting. But unease is growing within the ranks. And passengers have noticed. For instance, some of the so-called older carriers now require gate agents to clean the planes as well as check people in. So some passengers have found themselves without a customer-service agent to talk to until just before the plane leaves. Pilots find themselves stuck at the gate because their Crew of flight attendants has already worked as long as the FAA would allow them to. "They've cut employees to such a degree that they don't have enough employees to do the job and serve the customers properly," says one pilot. The major airlines contend that's not the case at all. Jeff Green, a spokesman for United Airlines, says the major carriers have shrunk significantly since 9/11. While there are far fewer employees, the airline also has far fewer flights. He also notes that United has had its best on-time performance in the past two years and that internal gauges of customer satisfaction are up. "What our employees are going through is not having an effect on our customer service," says Mr. Green. Employees on the front line tell a different story. "They're just closing the doors and releasing the brake so they can report an on- time departure, when in reality they may still be loading cargo for 30 minutes." Aviation experts contend that if that's the case, the major airlines may find even more challenges ahead. As their fare structures and prices come closer to those of the successful low-cost carriers, customer service will become even more crucial in determining which airlines succeed. "The way you're treated on the plane speaks a lot as to whether you'll fly that airline again," says Helane Becker, an airline analyst. "It's not the be-all and end-all. It's not going to put an airline out of business. But it's not going to help it a lot either if they're already in trouble./
单选题
Airline delays may result in A. Christmas baggage meltdown. B. the sharp reduction of flights. C. airline companies' bankruptcy. D. the interruption of passenger flow.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】本题问航班延误可能导致的结果。第一段末句“…the combination of which left hundreds of thousands of fliers stranded at airports．”说明航班延误使旅客滞留在机场。故[D]“旅客流动的中断”正确。 [A]圣诞包裹积压；[B]航班锐减：因果倒置。 [C]航空公司破产：过于严重，属过度推理。
单选题
The employees might think, if airline delay is to be avoided, the key factor is A. cost-cutting. B. sophisticated workers. C. high-spirited crew. D. good customer service.
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】本题问雇员认为避免航班延误的关键因素可能是什么。第二段说，“But airline employees see a deeper reason for both the increase in delays…：a demoralized and frustrated workforce that's being asked to do more even as it's getting paid leas”，因此解决问题的关键因素是提高员工情绪，故[C]“情绪高涨的员工”正确。 [A]削减成本：第三段第一句说，“The airlines and unions are quick to praise their workers for…carrying the brunt of the cost cutting”。降低成本是造成员工情绪低落的原因之一，要加大投入才有助于问题的解决。 [B]熟练员工：常识上认为熟练员工可以提高工作效率从而解决航班延误问题，但雇员认为造成航班延误的根本原因是员工的情绪低落而不是员工的工作熟练程度。 [D]良好的客服：雇员并未提及客服与航班延误有什么关系。
单选题
The example mentioned in paragraph 3 shows that A. largely reducing staff is not wise. B. cost cutting is not necessary. C. customers are not taken seriously. D. flight attendants are overloaded by FAA.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】本题问第三段中的例子说明什么。第三段中提到“So some passengers have found themselves without a customer-service agent to talk to…”，表明裁员造成乘客服务质量的下降。“…their crew of flight attendants has already worked as long as the FAA would allow them to．”人员减少使得员工工作时间延长。“They've cut employees to such a degree that they don't have enough employees to do the job and serve the customers properly”说明大量的裁员导致人手不足，其结果是不能完成工作任务及为旅客提供良好的服务，故 [A]“大量裁员是不明智的”正确。 [B]成本削减是不必要的：例子中所强调的是人员短缺所引起的后果，所以只能说裁员不明智，不能说任何成本削减都没必要。 [C]乘客没有被认真地对待：文中员工无暇顾及乘客服务是由于人手不足造成的而不是员工的工作态度。 [D]FAA使航班人员超负荷工作：第三段第六句提到“…their crew of flight attendants has already worked as long as the FAA would allow them to”，说明员工的工作时间已达到FAA所允许的极限。正是由于有了 FAA制定的工作负荷极限，才使得超负荷工作的现象没有出现。
单选题
In the eyes of Green, United Airlines A. is not experiencing a difficult time. B. faces rising customer demands. C. has fewer opponents after 9/11. D. provides good service despite fewer workers.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】本题问Green对联合航空公司的看法。第四段“…there are far fewer employees…．United has had its best on-time performance in the past two years and that internal gauges of customer satisfaction are up．”“What our employees are going through is not having an effect on our customer service．．．”说明在Green看来，人员的减少并未对客户服务工作造成干扰。故[D]“虽然人员减少但仍能提供良好的服务”正确。 [A]没有处在困难时期：第四段第二句“…the major carriers have shrunk significantly since 9/11。”第三句“… the airline also has far fewer flights”都说明民航业正处于一个比较困难的时期。 [B]面对着旅客提出的越来越高的要求：第四段第四句提到“．．．internal gauges of customer satisfaction are up．” (旅客满意的内部标准提高了)，这里指的是民航公司对旅客满意度评估的标准提高了，而不是说旅客提出更高要求。 [C]在9/11之后对手变少：第四段第二句“．．．the major carriers have shrunk significantly since 9/11”，说明整个民航业都受到影响而“缩水”，而不是对手减少。
单选题
Aviation experts believe that the customer service of the major airlines A. is of little importance. B. is close to that of low cost carriers. C. decides whether they will survive. D. should not be ignored.