Seriously, what’s up with all the bobbleheads in the media pontificating about how the airlines made $3 point something billion on “fees” last year? If I read one more quote about how someone feels “nickel and dimed” by the airlines or arrived at the airport and was surprised by the fees they charge I might scream. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last 3 years, it shouldn’t be a surprise that most airlines are charging for checking luggage nowadays. Admittedly, I’ve always thought JetBlue’s 1 bag free policy was the right one for the industry and for Customers. However, I don’t think any of the airlines that charge for the first bag have been hiding the fact that they do so. And so what if the airlines received a $3 billion or so plus up on the revenue line from “fees.” Here’s a tip. If you don’t want to pay a checked bag fee, buy a reasonable carry on bag and leave the kitchen sink at home.
That said, I think airlines could do a better job of public relations on this. Stop saying things like “we must institute these fees due to high oil prices” or whatever. Be honest. It’s not just high oil prices. Airlines haven’t made money since the Wright Brothers and this is just one experiment to try and make the bleeding stop. The airlines should also proactively refund the checked bag fee of any passenger whose bags are misdirected and do not arrive on the same flight they travel on. Taking the money and then not giving it back when the airlines don’t live up to their end of the bargain only reinforces the perception that this is just a confiscatory money grab and not a reasonable unbundling of services where you only pay for the services you want.
Anyways…..now you know where I stand on bag fees. Off soap box.
Bag fees are just a new fact of life. I am really glad that the whole military bag fee thing blew up the other week thought. It reminded me that I could be using my military ID to get out of bag fees on most carriers for my leisure travel.
How do most people select their flights? The go on orbitz or expedia (or similar sites), type their cities and dates, sort by price, and buy.
Customers in the US have trained airlines that they should be in a race to the bottom in terms of what service they offer and have by their actions told carriers that they want a la carte pricing. You ask, you get.
With the possible exception of jetblue (which has built a reputation off of their coach ife), no carrier of size really has a materially differentiated coach product. (virgin is in early stages…but doesn’t have the penetration of jet blue yet) So, when many customers picks a flight, price is by and away their top consideration. Lower your optical price, you’ll sell more seats. Pretty simple.
I view this as a boon for frequent travelers, those with elite status on carriers. Assuming Orr seat the carriers collect, on average $10 in baggage fees ($25+ from some seats, $0 from others), this works out to a nice discount for elite pax. Imagine AA said we’ll give 5% off all fares to our elites? That would be big news – and effectively what carriers have done.
We should also look at other markets for ideas. Qantas, for example, has a fare category (red e-deals), which, for domestic travel, does not permit checking a bag. This is the lowest fare, and then the next category up allows a certain baggage allowance. Full fare, iirc, has an even greater bags allowance. It sort of takes the conflict situation off the table. They can advertise a low fare, but when you buy your ticket, you can decide if you want to pay $x and not check a bag, or $x+ and be able to check something. This is a decent way to go in terms of avoiding the airport conflict of bag fees…but doesn’t give the disproportionate discount to elite flyers.
Which model do you prefer? (it probably depends on how much you fly…and how many bags you carry!)