disneyholic family
disney on my mind....
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2002
the following is an article from yahoo
Bag fees on international flights? They're coming ...
You may have gotten used to paying a fee to check a bag on a domestic flight, but are you ready to start paying to do so on international flights, too? American Airlines announced on Friday that it would begin charging customers $50 for checking in a second bag on flights to India and most of its European destinations. Reuters says "the fees would apply on routes to, from, or through India, as well as the countries of Belgium, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Switzerland." Customers can still check one bag at no charge.
However, American is not alone by looking to international routes as a new source of fee revenue. The Chicago Tribune writes AA "joins others recently adding similar fees, a sign that the charges that have proliferated for domestic travel over the past year are starting to turn up on international flights as carriers search for new ways to make money."
"I think we are just at the beginning of international fees," Henry Harteveldt, travel analyst at Forrester Research, says to the Tribune. Delta, for example, recently said it would begin charging customers $50 to check a second bag on flights between the USA and Europe. Other airlines have already moved to add checked-bag fees on other international routes, such as to Latin America.
The Tribune writes "although passengers have grumbled about the baggage fees on domestic flights, the charges haven't changed travel patterns. So it's little wonder U.S. carriers are starting to look at international travel, which has largely remained a fee-free zone." How big a boost can such fees give to the airlines? The Tribune notes the USA's ten-biggest carriers collected a combined $566.3 million in baggage fees during the first quarter of this year, according to data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
For some passengers, however, there are ways for avoid the fees. Travelers buying full-fare tickets typically are exempted from the fees, though such tickets are pricey when compared to the most deeply discounted fares. Additionally, most carriers shelter their top customers from checked baggage fees by waiving them for elite-level members of their frequent-flier programs.
Bag fees on international flights? They're coming ...
You may have gotten used to paying a fee to check a bag on a domestic flight, but are you ready to start paying to do so on international flights, too? American Airlines announced on Friday that it would begin charging customers $50 for checking in a second bag on flights to India and most of its European destinations. Reuters says "the fees would apply on routes to, from, or through India, as well as the countries of Belgium, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain and Switzerland." Customers can still check one bag at no charge.
However, American is not alone by looking to international routes as a new source of fee revenue. The Chicago Tribune writes AA "joins others recently adding similar fees, a sign that the charges that have proliferated for domestic travel over the past year are starting to turn up on international flights as carriers search for new ways to make money."
"I think we are just at the beginning of international fees," Henry Harteveldt, travel analyst at Forrester Research, says to the Tribune. Delta, for example, recently said it would begin charging customers $50 to check a second bag on flights between the USA and Europe. Other airlines have already moved to add checked-bag fees on other international routes, such as to Latin America.
The Tribune writes "although passengers have grumbled about the baggage fees on domestic flights, the charges haven't changed travel patterns. So it's little wonder U.S. carriers are starting to look at international travel, which has largely remained a fee-free zone." How big a boost can such fees give to the airlines? The Tribune notes the USA's ten-biggest carriers collected a combined $566.3 million in baggage fees during the first quarter of this year, according to data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.
For some passengers, however, there are ways for avoid the fees. Travelers buying full-fare tickets typically are exempted from the fees, though such tickets are pricey when compared to the most deeply discounted fares. Additionally, most carriers shelter their top customers from checked baggage fees by waiving them for elite-level members of their frequent-flier programs.
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