You're charging me for what?! Airline fees way up since January 1
 

You're charging me for what?! Airline fees way up since January 1
Since January 1, passengers have been treated to a nonstop roller coaster ride of airline bankruptcies and mergers, fuel surcharges, and imaginative new ways of charging for "perks" that were once free. The devil is in the details, however, and knowing which airlines have added new fees can go a long way in helping you compare apples to apples in your airfare search. Here's a rundown of the new fees assessed by each airline since the calendar turned to 2008.....
http://www.smartertravel.com/travel-...0&u=SL4BB8D7A7

Man!!! :mad: I just left out of town today!!! And I go home on May 5th and have to pay Delta some dayum money for the second bag. That's some kinna bullisht!!!

And my sugar dropped due to the piss poor food they had on the flight I took to come out here... I have hella, hella evol when I deplaned.

Like customer service fails to exist for the common man. But there are some folks still there fighting for us--like the BBB.

Hawaiian Airlines just announced yesterday that they're increasing interisland fares by $5-$20. They've also joined the "$25 for a 2nd checked bag" bandwagon.

At least they still serve free food...and it's still not that bad.

American just joined the "$25 for the 2nd checked bag" club.

There are a ton of exemptions (Elite members, full fares, etc) and it doesn't take effect until 5/12... (either travel before 5/12 or purchased ticket before 5/12)

Their airfares have also gone up considerably.

I'm really worried... I live far from home and depend on Air travel to visit the family... should I book Thanksgiving/Christmas now?

My older sister lives even farther away (Cali) :(

Delta's "extra fees" among the highest in the industry

http://www.airfarewatchdog.com/Airfa...9/Default.aspx

I just tried to use my dividend miles to go to an out of town wedding, and my beloved USAirways is charging twice as many miles PLUS twice as much for the surcharge.

I'm not going to the wedding.

Airlines are talking about merging!

Two of the latest report are the worst! If the merge, there would be only one worst.

Airlines are taking big hits because of fuel prices as we are, but they do not give amenities as they used to. SW Air had to give up peanuts because some people were allergic, food, if there is food is crap, drinks totally over priced! To many flights but still equal to blocked flight times or the equipment was not properly checked as they should have been.

OOPs cracks in the air frames, wheels won't go down. I think that is called inspections. That is also called old planes that have been in the air to damn long and getting second market parts that are second rate.:mad:

I flew everyother week for 5 years on many of the airlines that have merged and they have gotten nothing but worse and scarier.

Flying is getting really expensive, especially out of a small airport.

On Saturday my BF had to fly from Honolulu to Fort Myers, FL to attend his grandma's funeral. Because he booked his flight at the last minute, airfares were sky high. Bereavement fares were a joke, too. We were lucky to find a R/T for $1297 when most carriers were charging well over $2K. He had to fly Northwest to SFO, and then US Airways to Charlotte then Fort Myers, though. Coming back he has to fly to ATL, then PDX, then back to Honolulu.

And why in the world do airlines think that fruit and cheese platters are what we want? He wanted me to see what kind of food they offered on board (comp or buy). I told him he's better off buying three Whoppers from the airport BK.

I can understand not serving food for short haul flights. Hawaii is 5-6 hours from anywhere on the West Coast. I can't believe most don't have anything else besides sandwiches. :mad:

I am in a long distance relationship and it is crazy how much money I spend on plane flights back and forth. Luckily, I fly southwest and they have a great rewards program and I have already received three free roundtrip tickets to anywhere they fly. I also buy my tickets months ahead of schedule because they have a good policy on changing flights. But prices are getting more and more out of hand :( maybe it is time to have the "when are we going to live in the same city" talk. :p

I just booked my flight for LA. It was almost twice as expensive to fly PHL-> LAX than Allentown -> PHL -> LAX. So guess who's going to be getting up before the crack of dawn to make the hour drive to Allentown? With the price of gas though, this might not end up being much cheaper.

I'm sorry to hear about your bf's grandmother - hope he's okay.

Does American still have those bistro bags? Those seem to be the only really practical meal for the longer flight. My pet peeve on a long flight is to be seated next to the drunk who complains about absolutely everything he's served - but he wants seconds, if possible. :rolleyes:

American to charge $15 for first checked bag
 

American to charge $15 for first checked bag

FORT WORTH, Texas - American Airlines will start charging $15 for the first checked bag, cut domestic flights and lay off workers as it grapples with record-high fuel prices.
But rival Delta doesn’t plan to match American’s fee for the first checked bag, a spokeswoman said.
American, the nation’s largest carrier, said Wednesday the fee for the first checked bag starts June 15 and that it would raise other fees for services ranging from reservation help to oversized bags. The other fees will mostly range from $5 to $50 per service, the airline said.....
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24756513/

What are airlines going to do next take start charging passengers that weigh more than a set amount, or maybe they can start charging handicapped people for wheelchairs when getting on and off the plane. This is absolutely ridiculous!!!!!!

ETA: Maybe if the really needed to save money they could stop paying their C.E.O.'s million dollar salaries instead of cutting bottom level jobs from employees who desperately need the income. But that idea makes sense logically and morally so why would a giant corporation ever do something like that???

Wasn't American one of the first carriers to stop complimentary meal service? I can't remember who it was first, but I remember other carriers became buy on board soon thereafter.

I won't be surprised if the other airlines will start charging for the first bag as well. :mad:

I don't think I've ever flown on American. :confused:

lucky me, i get to fly on American to Convention!! I thought it was bad that they were charging for the 2nd bag and now I even have to pay for the first. I'll be sure to bring my breakfast for the trip out there so I don't have to pay them for scraps or the high prices for airport food!

I understand they are losing money due to increased costs, but they will be losing at least some travel for pleasure because of these extra fees. Where is the breaking point?

They want people to pay to bring a bag? This is ridiculous. What do they expect you to do? Only use one set of clothes for your entire trip? Now they've crossed the line. They better never lose another piece of luggage...EVER.

Delta was too I think....

Now that's a good point about lost luggage. I do believe that if an airline lost my luggage, I would demand a refund of that fee.

I guess we are going to start paying for the bags of peanuts and pretzels too. :rolleyes:

Some airlines (many of the smaller, short haul regional ones) are already doing that.

Some carries even took away pillows.

Shows you how much I fly. That is just wrong.

I agree that if we're going to pay for checked bags they better make darn sure they don't lose it!

Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but American announced it will charge $15 for the first checked bag.

How long before they start charging for carryons? :rolleyes:

Maybe instead of giving their execs hordes of cash in bonuses they should invest in their own business so they dont continue to piss people off or go bankrupt.

American has been doing that for a while. Last time I flew American (a few months ago), they offered peanuts at $2/bag, snack packs at $4 or $5, and a sandwich for maybe $10? - on a 4-hour flight! (The guy sitting next to me bought the sandwich, and it was pretty tired-looking.)

Any day now, they're going to start charging for soda and other non-alcoholic drinks... :rolleyes:

Read post #13;)

You know what? I had a feeling you were going to make the effort to create a new post just to tell t*p that she missed your link to yet another news article!

I'm being honest here when I say that it's so easy to overlook your posts these days because if it's filled with article links, I skip em. You think you're doing us a big favor by providing these links, but I get the feeling no one really cares anymore.

You're good people, Jon and I can stand you more than I can with several other GCers. But these links and pointing out when people miss these links? It's gotta stop.

I heard about American's decision to start charging for the first bag when I was driving home this afternoon and thought, "I hope my company didn't book my July flight with them." Got home and lucked out. But by the time I fly again in September everyone might be charging for first bag.

And texas*princess, I'll be pissed if they start charging for carryons.

Seriously. The links are ridiculous and out of control. Voice your own opinions and ideas instead of constantly posting snippets and links. No one reads the damn things. If you want to add something to a conversation/thread, say it yourself instead of the incessant spamming.

Lets turn this around on to you instead;)
You are free to to add your POV, as you have here, while I can add links to media sources.
Last time I checked, links to media sources are not considered spam;
unlike some of the other stuff, pictures included, I see posted here every so often.
And if you are going to bring it up, bring it up every-time someone posts links. or bring it up with the Mods rather than here.
BTB-Great way to hi-jack a thread.

agreed with OTW & Kddani...

Pictures are not spam.

If all someone does is post link after link after link, it does raise the suspicion that they may be a stealth marketer who's trying to increase traffic at certain sites.

eta since I apparently mortally offended jon1856 and he wants me to die in a fire now, I don't think he is a stealth marketer, but some random person coming upon this site and seeing a poster whose raison d'etre is apparently to post every link in the western world might think that.

Back to topic...

I can just imagine what the carry on loads are going to be like now. A lot of people already use their purse, personal bag and often a third bag. Many people don't store anything under their seats. Now what will happen if you are forced to bag check at the gate because the bins are already full? And can you imagine the backup at security check points? People are always forgetting about the 3 oz. rule.

Why don’t the airlines just keep costs fixed and then have ticket prices fluctuate depending on the price of fuel? They could even put the price of fuel right on the ticket price. They need to quit trying to make up for losses in other areas.

that would require common sense....and they don't want to be seen as commoners

most airlines ( i think) limit the amount of carry-ons you can have to one if you are male, two for ladies counting a purse, since that sits in the lap.

I'm going to europe this summer with one bag i do not plan to check, so i can hop off the plain, get my passport stamped, and get out into the open air, after being couped up that whole time.

Kevlar-I saw a reason or at least a possible explanation. However, it seems as if some people would rather not see it.:rolleyes:

Thanks for PMing me the link Jon.

Here's the info in case anyone else is interested.

No kidding.

I'm glad I'm Platinum so I can board right after first class since it's hard to get overhead space on regular flights anyway. But this is going to be insane.

ANd security frustrates me sooooo much. I travel ALL THE TIME and it sucks when you are in an airport that doesn't have a first class security line and you end up behind the family of 5 that has 2 baby strollers and 5 backpacks and they have no clue what needs to go through the xray machine or they they can't be wearing metal or have cell phones in their pockets/etc. I can't imagine adding carryon suitcases with liquids all over the place and no ziplock bags...

I carry on to a plane a bag with my camera gear and CPAP machine-neither one is going into the hold. Ends up being a size that just fits regulations.
Now, with this stuff, people will be being everything on board the plane and I agree it will cause problems.
Think of this situation:
A family of four goes to FL for either a long weekend or short week.
Now you will have four, "small" rolling take-on sized pieces of luggage. Add to that 2-3 other bags.
Now add in a full plane due to flight cut backs.

Just for smiley21 and Honeychile