Baggage Fees? Are Airlines Getting Greedy?

Now that my wife and I are in our 50s we travel more often. On a recent flight from Dallas to Minneapolis, we upgraded to First Class for the additional rate of $99.00 each. I found it interesting that even though we upgraded we still had to pay the $20.00 checked bag fee. To me, it seems excessive, but it is the way of the world now. With 180 - 200 or more seats per airliner, if the flight is full, well, you can do the math. This little $20.00 fee adds a nice amount to the airlines bottom line with each flight. There aren't many choices, if you're gone for more than a weekend or so, you'll need to check a bag.

As more and more folks boarded the plane, we noted that carry-on bags were larger than they used to be. The small roller bag was the exception rather than the rule, with a larger, bulkier roller bag taking its place. Some people even had trouble rolling them down the aisle.

"Seems to me, since the airline charges that $20.00 for the first bag, that people are using bigger and bigger carry-on bags," I commented to my wife. Sure enough by the time the plane was getting full, the overhead storage was all taken up by the larger roller bags. No longer are people willing to have a bag at their feet. I'm sure everyone has the same attitude: if I have to pay for my checked bag, I'm putting the other one in the overhead so I can stretch my legs out.

As it turned out, with more people boarding, the flight attendants announced that the overhead bins were full - so anyone with a carry-on that would not fit under the seat ahead of them would need to leave it at the front of the plane to be checked through for them. This led to grumbling from passengers who simply were in the last group to board, some having small roller bags which should have been allowed - in addition to having to remove medications if these were in their carry-on bags, it was an inconvenience to these travelers.

My question to the airlines is this? Is it really worth it to have the passengers curse you under their breath? Or taking out their frustrations on flight attendants pushing a quarter's worth of potato chips for $3.00? Not only are the carriers adding more seats, shrinking the space in front of each passenger and closing in on the leg room, but to add insult to injury, we must pay for only one checked bag. Shouldn't the airlines take that into account when the rate for the airfare is set? Prices continue to go up, space continues to shrink, seats are smaller, even the seat belts are shorter. How embarrassing when not extremely overweight, one has to ask for a seat belt extender! Some of my friends who have already retired have decided to take road trips over the past few years instead of flying to their vacation destinations. A Minnesota drive to Florida or Arizona each year is more comfortable than being cramped into an airline seat.

The sad thing is that it's not the airline that receives the patrons' wrath. The flight attendants deal with the unhappy passengers. These poor souls don't even get paid until the plane is in the air, now they are fighting tooth and nail to get everyone aboard. A longer process brought about by the fee per checked bag rule. People have larger roller bags so that they don't have to pay to check a bag, and the last ones on the plane might not be able to bring on their smaller - appropriately sized bag. Flight attendants trying to stow baggage, taking bags to the gangway door to be checked - all the while listening to unhappy passengers who feel that they are being taken for a ride by the airline, and not the one that gets them to their destination.

Wake up, airline companies. Is it worth it? Some of us have no choice but to fly, but it is the recreational passenger that pays your bills. As more business travel is replaced by telephone conferences and internet chats, more recreational travelers are choosing to stay closer to home or drive their own cars across the country, where will you be in the future? Certainly you can't believe that your international travelers can replace your domestic revenues?

The older, retired folks will still travel, with or without you. And our numbers are growing. We are not so quick to turn over our hard-earned and saved dollars.

I suppose a cost-benefit analysis is in order soon. Without passengers - it all becomes moot.