By Dr. Sawraj Singh
I was surprised by what President Trump recently had to say about American airports. He said that as compared to Asian countries, American airports looked like third world countries. I said the same thing more than 25 years ago when we moved from the east coast to the west coast, and flew over the Pacific to go to India. We always flew to India from New York by the Air India flight to Delhi. The flight had just one stop in London of about one hour. We never had a chance to really compare American airports to other countries.
When we moved to the Seattle area, we met a very intelligent Indian lady who was a travel agent. She said that from Seattle, we can fly to India either over the Atlantic or the Pacific Ocean. However, she strongly recommended the Pacific route. She said she always takes a North West Airline flight to Tokyo and the next day flight to Delhi by Air India. She said that we will always thank her for recommending this flight. We took her advice and whole-heartedly agree with her. The flight reached Tokyo in the early evening. The airline took us to a resort near the airport and we stayed there for the night. We were also given vouchers for dinner and for breakfast. The quality of the food and the services in the restaurant could compare to the best anywhere in the world.
After breakfast, they took us back to the airport. We had plenty of time before our flight to Delhi. That was the first time that we could really compare an Asian airport to American airports. We found a big difference in the atmosphere, hospitality, cultural experience, cleanliness and quality of services. We always took this flight until the North West Airline stopped the flight. Then, we tried other Asian airlines like Singapore, Korean, Thai, Malaysian, Hong Kong etc. Our experiences at the airports in these Asian countries were similar to our experience in Japan.
Therefore, we are not surprised by the fact that in the 2018 ratings of the top 100 airports in the world, the top four positions are held by Asian airports, whereas none of the American airports made it to the top ten or even top 20. Denver airport is the highest ranking American airport which was placed at the 29th position.
What are the reasons for the American airports’ relative decline? I feel that the reasons are the same as are for the general decline of America. There are two main reasons. First, American infrastructure was laid down in the sixties and seventies and has neither been properly updated or maintained. Compared to this, the Asian countries’ infrastructure is much more modern and advanced. When the Incheon Airport was first opened in 2001, we flew there from the LAX Airport. The LAX Airport looked primitive compared to the Incheon Airport. The second reason is that America has failed to evolve into a truly multicultural society. America never had a deep-rooted culture; it was a mixture of European cultures. However, with the growing non-European population, the influence of the European culture has been diluted, while a new culture based upon multiculturalism has not evolved.
Whereas in the Asian countries, the national culture is still very strong and the people feel that the visitors are their guests and they have to show the best of their country and culture, in America, such a feeling is almost completely lacking. When I first came to America in 1971, it was a very different country. I wrote letters to my mother about my experiences. They were very positive. America was so different then. Within a year, I went to many countries in Europe and to Canada. I felt that America was the best because the infrastructure was brand new at that time and that was reflected in people’s mood and attitude.
However, over the next 40 years, mostly after the eighties, I saw America gradually decline because the infrastructure was not updated. Moreover, there was a basic change in the quality of immigrants. In the sixties and the early seventies America attracted the top most and the highest qualified people from all over the world. Then there was a qualitative change, capitalist greed became the dominant motivation for immigration. To make maximum money in minimum time became the common objective of the capitalists as well as the immigrants. The condition of American airports coordinates very well with the quality of immigrants and the speed of development. American greed certainly took its toll.
In the same period, the Asian countries started coming up. They were able to absorb the new technology while retaining their national culture, national pride and their traditional values. They have been able to update their infrastructure and at the same time maintain social stability and harmony. The condition of the airports is indicative of this phenomenon.
Singapore’s Changi Airport has been judged the best airport in the world more times than any other airport. It has many unique features like a butterfly garden, sunflower garden, cactus garden, waterfalls, free movie theatre, very fine restaurants, etc. When we passed through this airport the first time on our way to India, we were surprised to find out that we will be given a free tour of the city. Once we took the tour, we decided to come back and stay there for a couple of days. The Incheon Airport is also one of the topmost airports in the world. It offers free internet, free video games, free cultural shows and musical shows to tell you about the Korean culture. My children very much enjoyed playing the latest video games on giant flat screen TVs. The music is very soothing, and the architectural design emphasizing open and connected spaces with beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights helps you to relax and gives you a break from the usual hustle and bustle of airports.
It is a good thing that President Trump has realized that America now lags behind the Asian countries in the condition of its airports and looks like a third world country. Americans have to move away from the notion that America is the best in every field. They are living in an illusion if they feel that. The reality is that America now lags behind in many fields such as infrastructure, healthcare, education and even in fields like nuclear weapons in which Russia is leading; and even in the field of computers, which has always been a field of America’s established supremacy, China is posing a serious challenge. President Trump’s observation about the condition of American airports can serve as an eye-opener and make America aware of the new global realities. For anybody, including Americans, it is better to face realities rather than live under illusions.
Dr. Sawraj Singh, MD F.I.C.S. is the Chairman of the Washington State Network for Human Rights and Chairman of the Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice. He can be reached at [email protected].
