US airlines under fire for raising baggage fees again
Connecticut attorney Jim Aspell would rather pay a larger airfare than bother with add-on fees. Aspell, whose son works at an airline, can fly for free on that carrier. But when he has luggage to check in, he prefers Southwest Airlines, which grants customers two checked bags minus the fees that have become nearly ubiquitous in the industry. He flies about once a month and has noticed that over the past decade it takes longer to leave the plane, as passengers wrestle with oversized baggage they carried on board. “People are bringing everything but the kitchen sink on board to try to avoid the bag fees,” he said. “It doesn’t do anybody any favours.” Those fees have gone up again. Delta Air Lines last week raised the price of checking in a first bag from $30 to $35. Five US carriers have raised bag fees by $5 in the past two months, starting with Alaska Airlines and JetBlue Airways in January and February, then American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta in a two-week window. All now charge $35 to check a first bag online. All except Delta charge $40 or more to check that bag at the airport. “They are like lemmings when it comes to this stuff,” said Bill McGee, a senior fellow for aviation and travel at the American Economic Liberties Project, an anti-monopoly think-tank. American, Delta and JetBlue all cited rising industry costs as driving their decision. The airline industry is confronting inflation, higher fuel prices and higher labour costs. “We remain unprofitable since Covid,” JetBlue said. “While we don’t like increasing fees, it’s one step we are taking to return our company back to profitability and cover the increased costs of transporting bags.” Story has more.<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2024-03-11/general/us-airlines-under-fire-for-raising-baggage-fees-again
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US airlines under fire for raising baggage fees again
Connecticut attorney Jim Aspell would rather pay a larger airfare than bother with add-on fees. Aspell, whose son works at an airline, can fly for free on that carrier. But when he has luggage to check in, he prefers Southwest Airlines, which grants customers two checked bags minus the fees that have become nearly ubiquitous in the industry. He flies about once a month and has noticed that over the past decade it takes longer to leave the plane, as passengers wrestle with oversized baggage they carried on board. “People are bringing everything but the kitchen sink on board to try to avoid the bag fees,” he said. “It doesn’t do anybody any favours.” Those fees have gone up again. Delta Air Lines last week raised the price of checking in a first bag from $30 to $35. Five US carriers have raised bag fees by $5 in the past two months, starting with Alaska Airlines and JetBlue Airways in January and February, then American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta in a two-week window. All now charge $35 to check a first bag online. All except Delta charge $40 or more to check that bag at the airport. “They are like lemmings when it comes to this stuff,” said Bill McGee, a senior fellow for aviation and travel at the American Economic Liberties Project, an anti-monopoly think-tank. American, Delta and JetBlue all cited rising industry costs as driving their decision. The airline industry is confronting inflation, higher fuel prices and higher labour costs. “We remain unprofitable since Covid,” JetBlue said. “While we don’t like increasing fees, it’s one step we are taking to return our company back to profitability and cover the increased costs of transporting bags.” Story has more.<br/>
