Several other factors contributed to the low unit costs of the LCCs. The utilization of secondary airports
and older terminals reduced airport fees and also, up to a certain point it made it possible to avoid head-on
competition with the FSCs carriers. Also, less congested airports reduce average flight times and delay incidents.
Consequently LCCs started to attract business travelers who value punctuality and frequency. The deployment of
homogeneous fleets resulted in savings with maintenance, cockpit training and standby crews. Other important
features of the early LCCs include innovative boarding processes that yielded shorter ground waits, no air freight, no
hub services, short cleaning times and a lean sales force due to greater reliance on online sales. Labor costs represent
an important cost category in the airline industry, accounting for about one third of total operating costs. Keeping
these costs under control can make a big difference with respect to the financial viability of the airlines. Strong
unions and more rigid institutional arrangements and agreements prevented the FSCs from achieving the labor cost
efficiencies of the LCCs. On the other hand, the LCCs benefited from flexible and highly motivated workers who
were often given a vested interest through profit sharing programs.