Americans Divided On Air Travel, Says Nationwide Survey by Simmons Market Research Bureau; Consumers Speak Out on Airport Security.

Business Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sept. 19, 2001

To fly or not fly...that is the question facing many Americans today in light of the recent terrorist Attacks on America.

Americans are divided on whether they will take to the air or not in the next twelve months, but they are speaking out with a unified voice on matters of airport security, says a nationwide survey by Simmons Market Research Bureau.

"There's no doubt that the Attacks have had a serious and immediate impact on both personal and business air travel," said Chris Wilson, President of New York-based Simmons Market Research Bureau. "In fact, Americans are divided on how these attacks will affect their travel plans in the next twelve months. However, what is evident is that they very clearly share similar opinions about airport security."

Here's an inside look at how Americans feel about air travel as revealed by the Simmons survey...

-- When it comes to personal travel, American consumers are split almost down
the middle. Of the survey respondents who had personal air travel plans in the
next 12 months, 44% said the Attacks would have little to no effect, while 39%
said recent events would have a large to very large effect on their plans. In
contrast, 57% of frequent leisure travelers said the Attacks would have little
to no effect on their plans.

-- Business air travel will be somewhat less influenced by the Attacks, with
62% of those surveyed with plans for business travel in the next 12 months
saying that the course of events will have little to no effect on their plans.
Only 20% indicated that the Attacks would have a large to very large effect on
their plans. Frequent business travelers however were twice as likely to
believe the Attacks would have a large to very large effect on their plans.

-- Regarding airline choice, nearly two-thirds of respondents who planned to
travel for business or leisure said the Attacks will have little to no effect
on which airline they will fly in the future. In contrast, 88% of frequent
business travelers and 83% of frequent leisure travelers report the Attacks
will have little to no effect on their airline choice.

-- For those who will travel overseas by any means of transportation, nearly
half said the Attacks will have little to no effect on their travel plans,
while one-third are shaken by the tragic events which they said will have a
large to very large effect on their travel plans.

-- Nearly half of Americans (46%) surveyed have little faith in the
effectiveness of airport security, giving a rating of only 1 or 2 on a scale of
1-5 (where 1 is not at all effective and 5 is extremely effective).

-- Seven in ten of those surveyed felt that better airport security would have
prevented the terrorist attacks.

-- Americans are willing to take time out of their busy schedules in exchange
for better security. Nearly three-quarters of the respondents said they would
spend an additional hour or more at the airport for increased security
measures. Frequent flyers are even more willing to wait. 91% of frequent
business flyers and 88% of frequent leisure flyers said they would be willing
to spend an additional hour or more at the airport to allow for increased
security procedures.

The Simmons poll was conducted from September 13 to September 15, 2001. The sample of 1,093 respondents came from a re-contact study of Simmons National Consumer Survey and the percentages reported in this release are weighted by projected U.S. Census Bureau statistical estimates. The maximum sampling error for this poll is +/- 4%. Simmons is providing this analysis free of charge to its customers to help them understand the prevailing attitudes of the American public and changes in their behavior as a result of the recent terrorist attacks.

Simmons, a subsidiary of Symmetrical Resources, Inc. is a leading provider of consumer-centric marketing information offering advertisers, agencies, marketers, retailers and media companies a wide array of syndicated and proprietary research including the National Consumer Survey, the Hispanic Study, Kids Study, Teen Study and the Gay and Lesbian Study, as well as customized research.

[Tomorrow, survey results will be available regarding American's feelings toward the Federal government and potential official actions that can be taken in response to the Attacks. Additional topics were covered by the recent Simmons survey. To find out more about topline results or in-depth commentary, contact 845-638-9885.]