So far, at least, TAP Airlines has stated that its serious political problems over the course of the last few months have not affected its operations. Political kickbacks that included an overly generous severance package sparked a massive political firestorm in Portugal as questions were asked about the relationship between the flagship carrier that has been privatized and sought to position itself as a low-cost leader in bringing transatlantic travel to many and the Portuguese government that is expected to fairly regulate it and other airlines has blossomed. While the scandal has lasted for several months and involved some substantial shakeups in the Portuguese government, the airline wants to maintain that the political firestorm has nothing to do with its operations.

And this may be true, but it also may not be enough. As if the concerns about the carrier were not enough, relations between the ATC union and management are contentious enough that the ATC have threatened to go on strike for three days in August this summer, in a move that is sure to make travelers even more weary in the face of delayed and canceled flights and more shenanigans like travelers have already been seeing so far this summer like reduced flights allowed along the airpaths that has sent delays skyrocketing for flights arriving to and departing from Portugal and Spain this summer. Whether or not the particular difficulties a traveler faces are due to an airline or due to ATC or due to factors not in anyone’s control, if enough travelers have bad experiences, it will become increasingly obvious and increasingly troublesome. And lowering fares may not be enough to win back customers who have had negative experiences with travel operations.

The movement of people from one place to another is not a sentimental business, and today’s travelers are not necessarily very sentimental about their travel decisions either. The proliferation of low-cost options, particularly throughout Europe, has given customers considerable leverage in determining which airlines to support under which circumstances. Low cost, friendly customer service, transparent policies and fees, and reliable operations are all pretty important to consumers who often show no brand loyalty and are quick to put their travel dollars in paying for companies that are willing and able to fulfill promises about an enjoyable and relatively hassle-free travel experience that is long on good memories and short on delays and interruptions to service. TAP has promoted itself not as a high-end airline that provides a luxurious travel experience, but rather as a cheap travel option in crowded European skies, and if it wants to maintain its place as a premier airline in that space, it will need more than a cozy relationship with Portuguese national regulators, but also good relationships with customers whose experiences lead them to fly loyally with TAP rather than merely opportunistically.

It is unclear that a TAP whose credibility has been weakened by political scandals, whose management is under intense scrutiny, and whose operations are struggling to keep their flights on time is going to be able to provide the sort of leadership that Portugal’s airline sector would expect and demand. Wherever the blame lies in TAP’s troubled operations, ultimately the blame game is not going to be a profitable one for the airline to play. What is needed is to get its operations on a solid footing, a footing that does not lead to scandals over hacked customer information or kickbacks and other corruption between it and Portugal’s government, but rather involves happy customers arriving and departing on time to their travel destinations, thinking of Air Portugal as a worthy company to support and to patronize with their repeated and consistent business. That this is not the case right now ought to be of considerable concern to management in Lisbon. Just ask my mom.