Wow, less than a month since the company imposed the $25 fee for the second checked bag, and now this. The part about the new baggage charge, which will take effect with tickets bought on or after June 15, is in the second paragraph under “Additional Revenue Initiatives.” Needless to say, the company is blaming the cost of fuel. The fee will not apply to some types of passenger; details are in the press release.
I predict that American is going to see an increase in people trying to carry on larger bags than ever before, that the flight attendants are going to go nuts trying to deal with a lack of room in the overhead compartments.
In response to the earlier announcement that American was going to start charging for second bags on all flights booked after May 15th, I recently purchased tickets for two trips I was planning for September and November just in case I was going to want to check a second bag. Now I’m glad I did.
Does anyone remember People’s Express? It was one of the first no-frills airlines back in the 1980s. They charged for everything – checked bags, snacks, you name it. In 1985 they bought the original Frontier Arilines and became the 5th largest U.S. airline. By 1987, the airline was crushed by debt and sold out to Continental.
I wonder, if they had not taken on too much debt, whether the business model would have worked long-term.
Oh good grief.
I am just waiting for the announcement that they will be charging a $5 fee to anyone who wears more than underpants on a flight. :rolleyes:
Oh man. Everyone is going to have two of the biggest carry ons they can get away with.
And I thought it was bad now.
We pretty much always checks bags because of the idiots that bring way too much stuff on board, not leaving room for anyone else.
I think the solution is for them to charge for use of the overhead lockers. If you can’t fit it at your feet, without overflowing into the space of the person sitting next to you. you pay.
Something that just occurred to me regarding carry-ons. I usually try to get a seat near the front of the plane so I can get off the plane as quickly as possible. With American’s seating policy that means I’ll probably be in the last boarding group, which means that by the time I board the overhead compartments by my seat could be filled because people who are sitting in the middle of the plane will end up having to put both of their oversized bags in the front compartments because the people who are sitting in the back will have filled the overheads with their oversized bags.
Hmm. Considering the number of hair products I own + stupid fluid regulations, I guess I’m now paying $15 extra every time I fly American.
Good thing we’re a Scareways family.
I LOVE this and wholeheartedly endorse it!
Even when someone inveitably tries to stuff a Honda under the seat in front of them.
I am so frigging glad we aren’t flying coach next month…
Gah.
Yep. The last time I flew, I sat in the front of the plane. And by the time I boarded yes, the bins were full, and I had a rolling carry-on. The flight attendant found a spot in the back of the plane for it, which was cool. But once the plane landed, good luck trying to swim upstream to get to the back of the plane to get my bag! I was almost the last one off the plane, because I had to wait until everyone behind me left so I could walk down the aisle to the back where my bag was. 
I remember getting annoyed a few times because I was in the back of the plane and somebody five or six rows ahead of me had ended up putting one of their bags in the bin two rows behind their seat, and then insisted on pushing through the people standing in the aisle to get his bag instead of waiting for them walk past him.
Maybe I should see if I can change my seat assignment…
Yep, you got that absolutely right.
Which is why when I fly an airline that I am not elite level with (an thus get to board ahead of most), I book seats in the back of the plane. Never mind noisy, never mind the long wait to de-plane. At leastm I will probably have room in the overhead for my carryon. I don’t check bags, so the carryon is my life.
I do agree with the other sentiments that this could easily result in many more carryons…why not charge for them and let the checked baggage be free? I would not necessarily like paying for my carryon, but as I’ve said, it is my life. A $15 or $25 fee would be an aggravation, but not really a big deal when compared against the $400-1000 airfare + the 25-300 rental car + the $500-1000 hotel costs.
YMMV; it all depends on priorities.
From the link in the OP:
“Those who have purchased full-fare tickets in the Economy, Business and First Class cabins”? Isn’t that pretty much everybody who isn’t using frequent flier miles (and even then, wouldn’t those people generally be members of the various airlines’ programs)? I personally pay the lowest of the random-ass numbers Travelocity, Expedia, etc. spit out at me; is that not considered “full fare”?
I must be missing something here, because as written, it seems like this fee doesn’t actually apply to anyone.
I think it’s great. Airlines should charge by weight and by volume, both for baggage and people. Let everyone pay their own way. Why should I pay for the extra fuel it costs to transport someone else’s fat ass and their heavy bags, when I’m just traveling with a carry-on and backpack?
I’m no expect, but I don’t think you are paying “full fare”. I think in practice full fare is the ticket you buy that doesn’t have all the restrictions on cancellation, etc. In my recent travels to Europe my ticket was about $950 but these full fare tickets were around $2500 for the same flight and seat.
That’ll make everyone want to fly United.
Yes I feel the same way. If they were charging, I dunno, $100/bag I might have a problem with it but $15 seems pefectly reasonable, it’s only a fraction of even the cheapest airline ticket. If I tried to ship anything larger than a carry-on via USPS then I’m sure it would cost me at least $15.
Re: stuffing the overhead bins, I have a feeling with will happen is that the boarding crew will gate check bags that are obviously oversized, and then the passenger will be retroactively charged $15 or $25. Ditto for 2nd roller bags. Also, two Christmases I was stopped at TSA for carrying too many bags – I had a purse, a roller, and soft satchel, I had to repack and stuff the satchel inside the roller bag before I could go thru security. Obviously YMMV, but if this becomes common practice it would help speed up boarding at the gates (in that, people will know ahead of time and will only pack one carry-on). FTR this was at ORD.
The thing I would dislike about this is that it would be impossible to buy a ticket in advance and know exactly how much it is going to cost you. This fee for the first bag makes this harder then it used to be, given the airlines fairly unpredictable behavior regarding whether they will make you check it or not.
Imagine if they went all the way and weighed you when you booked your ticket. If you lost weight by the time you flew, would they give you a partial refund? If you gained weight would you pay more then? Perhaps as a condition of carriage they could provide you with a meal and exercise plan to maintain your weight when you booked your flight …
I don’t in principle have an objection to charging people more if they have a crazy amounts of baggage. I do in principle have an objection to practices where a company advertises a price that does not reflect what you end up paying. We aren’t there yet, but I don’t trust the airlines, and think that this is where they are heading: to the point where they advertise a price but in practice it is impossible to fly at that price (because there is an additional $5 check in fee, a any-reasonably-convenient-payment-method fee, etc).