Look to leave that extra bag of underwear at home because it will cost you more...
The latest from American Airlines:
AMR Corp. became the first U.S. carrier to make more moves to deal with still-surging fuel costs, announcing additional U.S. capacity cuts, the planned retirement of at least 75 aircraft and more fees — including charging some fliers $15 for their first checked bag.
....Becoming the first carrier to start charging some customers for the first checked bag — just several months after carriers began hitting some with fees on a second checked bag for the first time — American is raising a host of other fees by $5 to $50. They are estimated to generate several hundred million dollars a year.
Airlines have spent years trying to bully passengers into reducing their carry-on luggage — with TSA pitching in to help in recent years. Now that they've finally broken us (I finally caved in and started checking everything several years ago) they're going to charge us for checking luggage.
Lovely.
I don't know anything about airline economics and obviously the American Airlines executive team does. Still, the kind of sleazy pricing practices they and the rest of the domestic industry are adopting, where advertised fares mysteriously rise 20% by the time you actually board the plane, seem like exactly the kind of thing designed to wreck their long-term business. People really don't like the feeling of being cheated and lied to. The industry's answer, I suppose, is that they have to survive in the short term in order for there to be a long term, and that's true enough. But if the problem is a secular, broad-based increase in fuel costs that hits everyone equally, I'm still a little stumped about why a blizzard of fees is supposed to be a better solution than simply raising prices a bit across the board.
Sadly, in a couple of days I'll be stepping onto an American Airlines flight to London. I sure hope they don't lose my checked luggage after charging me for the temerity of wanting a change of clothes on my trip. In the meantime, I think there's a niche somewhere for an airline that raises their prices a bit and runs blaring ads that announce "No Hidden Fees!" Or am I just dreaming?
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2008_05/013762.php
3 comments:
When gas goes up it affects everything. Everything moves on wheels. Every piece/part/ingredient got to the next stage on wheels, and all the piece/part/ingredient got there to make it. Now add all these pieces/parts/ingredients to the final product, a cost accountant had to add the cost of transportation into each piece/part/ingriendient times how many times it moved on wheels per how many miles, and added in the new fuel surcharges on top of it. OK so that's how things exponentially go up.
Gas has gone up 250% since Bush got in office, and sadly things are going up more.
When people have to spend more money to get to necessary places like work, there is less money for eating out, going to the movies, etc. all these areas will be affected by people having less expendable income.
If 9/11 didn't do the airlines in then this will surely take care of the rest. Less people flying, the worse off vacation destinations will be. Companies who have not already cut down on travel as far as conferances and meetings will do even more so. The rising gas prices have such a domino effect, well I could write a book. But summing it up it will affect everything, and more than people would like to think.
Have a Great trip to London, SP Biloxi.
You sure work hard at putting together this great site!
And I wish, Anon. You know, I was considering going to London but I postponed it due to Bush's new policies of international traveling. London is on my agenda to visit next year as well as Canada.
And I certainly won't travel on American Airlines.
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