This post comes from Lynn Mucken at MSN Money.

It's been a tough couple of weeks for the airline industry.

• A passenger on a United overnighter from D.C. to Ghana slapped the head of the man in front of him for reclining his seat. This, in turn, led to some unpleasant words, intervention by another passenger and a cabin crew member, a decision by the pilot to turn the plane around, the scrambling of two Air Force jets in case this was a terrorist incident, no arrests, and tons of comments on websites over what is proper etiquette among the common folk in economy.
• Delta check-in personnel, following the rules straight down a path to an extraordinary public-relations disaster, charged 14 Army reservists returning from deployment in Afghanistan $200 each for having excess baggage. Once the media got ahold of the story, Delta backed up quicker than a United seat, and relaxed its rules for the military. Other airlines followed suit.  Post continues after video. 

• The Transportation Department reported that nearly 25% of domestic flights were late arriving at their destinations in April. Horrendous storms throughout the Midwest and South were blamed. However, 21% of flights were late in March, when the weather was less offensive.

That pretty well sums up U.S. air travel these days: cramped seating, onerous and often unexpected fees, shoddy service.

The passengers must be in open rebellion, right? Not quite. Customer satisfaction is actually on the rise, up 1 percentage point, to 68.3%, in the past year, according to a survey by J.D. Power and Associates.

Satisfaction levels for the top "low-cost" airlines -- JetBlue and Southwest -- were well above that, at 77.3% and 76.9%, respectively. Alaska, at 68%, led what J.P. Power called the "traditional network" airlines.

How can that be? Just the fact that there has been no confirmed sighting of an airline attendant smiling since 2009 should drop the rating below 50%.

Sarcasm aside, air travel remains a pretty good product that is doing just as well as most industries in these troubled times (you must have noticed downsized packaging and cheaper ingredients in your grocery products).

Let's stick with the basics. Airlines get you to your destination safely, quickly and cheaply. 

• It has been nearly 10 years since a large U.S. carrier crashed with loss of life; an American Airlines flight bound for the Dominican Republic crashed shortly after takeoff from New York's JFK Airport on Nov. 12, 2001, with all 260 aboard killed. Since then, commuter jets have crashed near Buffalo, N.Y., and Lexington, Ky., with 49 dying in each incident. Your odds of landing without dying: 9.2 million to 1. Your odds against dying in an auto accident in any year: 9,000 to 1.
• Flying not only is safe, it is fast. Let's say you travel a lot between San Diego and Seattle (where, coincidentally, my grandchildren live). The flight takes two hours and 18 minutes. Driving the 1,250 miles takes 21 hours.
• And the financial numbers work out, too. You can book a one-way flight nonstop for two from San Diego to Seattle on Saturday, Aug. 20, for $300 on Alaska. Here's what driving costs: 43 gallons of gas driving a Mazda 5 at 65 mph -- $167. Motel for one night -- $98. Two meals for two each day (one breakfast, two lunches and one dinner) -- $119. Total -- $384.

Even if you add in renting a car, the time spent in airports, putting up with uncomfortable seats, and the ever growing nickel-and-diming, air travel is a deal.

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