American Airlines to charge for ANY checked bag

[dougp26364 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dougp26364]

There used to be a TV commercial showing a made-up airline competitor charging for bathroom access. At the rate the fees are going, I'm starting to think that might not be too far off.

If it's the comercial I'm thinking of, there was a guy who kept running into pay slots for everything like the window shade, the tray table, reclining the seat ect..... There was a young boy that looked at the guy and asked him, "Is this your first time flying?"

[bnoble Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close bnoble]

Airlines can continue to raise fee's and cut capacity but, if demand falls along with that cut in capacity, are they really gaining ground?

Potentially two ways.

Right now, at current fares vs. fuel costs, each passenger-mile loses money. Even if fare changes cannot stick, flying fewer passenger miles means losing less money.

However, they really win if the customers they turn away are the low-fare leisue customers, povided they can keep people willing to pay more in the process.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

Potentially two ways.

Right now, at current fares vs. fuel costs, each passenger-mile loses money. Even if fare changes cannot stick, flying fewer passenger miles means losing less money.

However, they really win if the customers they turn away are the low-fare leisue customers, povided they can keep people willing to pay more in the process.

Precisely. For years the airlines have been filling up planes with low fares, under the approach that since the plane will be flying anyway, they've already incurred the fixed costs associated with that flight and filling seats that wouldn't otherwise sell is added revenue.

That works as long as there isn't capacity surplus. For years now there has been surplus capacity in the airline industry, resulting in so much surplus space that as an industry they can't operate profitably.

Now with fuel prices rising the cost of flying is increasing faster than wages and income, which means that there will be a decline in traffic, exacerbating the surplus.

Given the confluence of factors there will be decreases in seating capacity. And to the extent airlines can retain higher fare paying customers while shedding low fare passengers in the process, they will come out ahead.

So look for airlines to reduce flight schedules and find as many ways as possible to add extra fees for the occasional travelers who fly on budget fares. I fully expect that in the future full fare tickets will start to include a variety of perks, most notably more liberal bag check allowances and a preference in seat assignment over discounted fares. i.e., purchase a discount ticket and you won't get a seat assignment until a day or two before check-in.

[dougp26364 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close dougp26364]

So flight will become the relm of those that can afford it rather than a transportation option for the common man. I have no problem with this since airlines should be in the business to make money and not thought of as a public transportation system.

On the other hand, since air transportation probably is thought of more as public transportation by many, I wonder how long it will be before big brother (government) sticks it's nose back into the buisness.

[T. R. Oglodyte Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close T. R. Oglodyte]

So flight will become the relm of those that can afford it rather than a transportation option for the common man. I have no problem with this since airlines should be in the business to make money and not thought of as a public transportation system.

On the other hand, since air transportation probably is thought of more as public transportation by many, I wonder how long it will be before big brother (government) sticks it's nose back into the buisness.

Fifty years ago flying was a luxury. When most people wanted to get someplace - a wedding in another state, a vacation getaway, etc. - they drove or took a train or bus.

A vast benefit of deregulation that most people have forgotten (if they're old enough) or aren't aware of (if they're younger) is how much air fares have declined. After deregulation, air fares dropped sufficiently that flying became as cheap as driving for many trips.

Since fuel prices affect both gasoline and jet fuel about equally, the relative costs of driving vs flying might remain the same. What will happen is that people will simply travel less.

[bnoble Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close bnoble]

I fully expect that in the future full fare tickets will start to include a variety of perks, most notably more liberal bag check allowances and a preference in seat assignment over discounted fares.

This already happens on Northwest. They waive second-bag fees for Y- and B- class fares, and those fare classes (plus one or two others) are eligible for exit-row seating. Cattle-class fares have to pay for exit rows and second bags.