# Delta has increase bag charges yet again.



## dougp26364 (Jan 13, 2010)

Begining with tickets purchased after Jan. 5th, first bag charges are now $23for the first bag and $32 for the second if you pay the fee in advance when you check in online. I swear that if they get them up there much more, it will be more profitable for us to use the baggage fee's to pay for gasoline to drive to Kansas City or Oklahoma City to fly SWA's.

http://consumerist.com/2010/01/delta-hikes-luggage-fees-23-for-1st-bag-32-for-2nd.html


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## Carolinian (Jan 13, 2010)

Hmmm!  I rarely check luggage myself, but DL is now higher than some of Europe's LCC's for the first checked bag!  Among US-based carriers, DL leaves no stone unturned to make certain it remains the king of extra fees.


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## LisaRex (Jan 13, 2010)

Between the baggage fees and the full-body searches by the TSA, maybe we should all start traveling in the nude.  

That'll teach 'em.


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## Liz Wolf-Spada (Jan 13, 2010)

Brr! Off to Florida, anyone?
Liz


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## Talent312 (Jan 13, 2010)

LisaRex said:


> Between the baggage fees and the full-body searches by the TSA, maybe we should all start traveling in the nude.



I could travel with a few items in a paperbag, tucked under my arm.
But I cannot break my wife's habit of packing half her wardrobe.

On my next flight, I'm gonna wear a warm-up outfit and puffy-slippers.


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## djs (Jan 13, 2010)

Just wait until they start charging us for even thinking of taking a trip.


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## camachinist (Jan 13, 2010)

Expect other legacy airlines to match. That said, with travel in its current state, airlines will likely be offering incentives to fly.

For example, one trip last November to Singapore earned me 52,000 elite qualifying miles, good enough for Star Gold status on United/Star Alliance. Trip cost - 668.00. The redeemable miles earned (same) will pay for two domestic award trips, essentially negating the airline cost of the trip. Also, such gets the flier not just two free checked bags, but three free, up to seventy pounds each using the weight criteria. Bag fees are also waived for up to 8 travelers on the *G's reservation. 

When the airline dishes out lemons, make lemonade


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## Talent312 (Jan 13, 2010)

djs said:


> Just wait until they start charging us for even thinking of taking a trip.



Hmmm, a fee for logging on to their website?

But some of us should think about dieting in preparation for our full-body scans...
It could help with our health care crisis.  Perhaps they could send scans to our docs.


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## Poobah (Jan 13, 2010)

*Interesting Idea*

There was a letter to the editor in the Mpls Star & Tribune this AM. The writer suggested that the airlines should charge for a carry on bag and NOT charge for the first checked bag. Things like briefcases, purses, laptops would be exceptions.

The logic is that this would speed security, boarding, and deplaning. This has merit!:whoopie: 

However, the airlines would need to improve baggage service.


Cheers,

Paul


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## Carolinian (Jan 14, 2010)

djs said:


> Just wait until they start charging us for even thinking of taking a trip.



As the King of Junk Fees among US airlines, I expect that DL may beat RyanAir to the punch to be the first to have pay toilets on their planes.


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## Carolinian (Jan 14, 2010)

Au contrare!  It is an idea that REALLY stinks.  Your carry on luggage is the only item you can be certain will arrive when you do, not be misplaced and arrive days later, not be damaged, not be lost, and not have items stolen from it.  That is why I travel light and take only a carry on, if I can, and I have done that LONG before they started charging for checked luggage.

What really shows that the writer of the letter to the editor simply has no idea of what they are talking about is to look at the European LCC's.  These airlines have made a science of getting passengers on and off planes for the quickest turnaround possible.  They make SW look like slackers in this regard. Yet they follow the pattern of allowing a free carry on and charging for all checked luggage.  In fact, they are the ones who invented that pattern, and the legacy airlines picked it up from them.  I particularly love the standards for carry on luggage on EasyJet, which while it has the usual size restrictions, makes none on weight.  As long as one person can heft it into the overhead unaided, then it is allowed.




Poobah said:


> There was a letter to the editor in the Mpls Star & Tribune this AM. The writer suggested that the airlines should charge for a carry on bag and NOT charge for the first checked bag. Things like briefcases, purses, laptops would be exceptions.
> 
> The logic is that this would speed security, boarding, and deplaning. This has merit!:whoopie:
> 
> ...


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## djs (Jan 14, 2010)

Carolinian said:


> Au contrare!  It is an idea that REALLY stinks.  Your carry on luggage is the only item you can be certain will arrive when you do, not be misplaced and arrive days later, not be damaged, not be lost, and not have items stolen from it.  That is why I travel light and take only a carry on, if I can, and I have done that LONG before they started charging for checked luggage.



And for that exact reason, shouldn't we be expected to pay a premium?  You want to "cheap out" you can try your luck with free checked baggage.  You want your stuff with you at all times and to arrive with you then you'll pay dearly.


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## Happytravels (Jan 14, 2010)

dougp26364 said:


> Begining with tickets purchased after Jan. 5th, first bag charges are now $23for the first bag and $32 for the second if you pay the fee in advance when you check in online. I swear that if they get them up there much more, it will be more profitable for us to use the baggage fee's to pay for gasoline to drive to Kansas City or Oklahoma City to fly SWA's.
> 
> http://consumerist.com/2010/01/delta-hikes-luggage-fees-23-for-1st-bag-32-for-2nd.html



I just checked CO and they have gone up too.  $23 for the first bag and $32 for the second......If you have one of those cards that gets you the first bag free the second has still gone up to $27.....we can't win for loosing.  I like the idea of leaving the clothes home..........seems everything would be faster and cheaper.:rofl:


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## djs (Jan 14, 2010)

Eventually, the cost to check a bag will be more than the airlines are obligated to pay for lost bags; if this happens it will be cheaper to pack a suitcase and then just throw the packed suitcase into a dumpster.


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## camachinist (Jan 14, 2010)

Or, it'll be cheaper to buy your bag a seat. Call it a 'violin' or something.


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## Carolinian (Jan 14, 2010)

camachinist said:


> Or, it'll be cheaper to buy your bag a seat. Call it a 'violin' or something.



Some have apparently tried that on European LCC's and some of them now specifically state on their websites that you cannot do that.


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## Carolinian (Jan 14, 2010)

DL is usually the one that trots out the consumer unfriendly measures first. Other airlines may or may not follow.  NW used to be the one most dependable not to follow DL on the more outrageous measures.  It's saying ''no'' probably stopped the Rob Borden screwing of the ff programs from going industry wide and led to DL itself eventually backing off of them and firing Borden.  Sadly, DL now controls NW, so that brake is no longer in place for consumers.





camachinist said:


> Expect other legacy airlines to match. That said, with travel in its current state, airlines will likely be offering incentives to fly.
> 
> For example, one trip last November to Singapore earned me 52,000 elite qualifying miles, good enough for Star Gold status on United/Star Alliance. Trip cost - 668.00. The redeemable miles earned (same) will pay for two domestic award trips, essentially negating the airline cost of the trip. Also, such gets the flier not just two free checked bags, but three free, up to seventy pounds each using the weight criteria. Bag fees are also waived for up to 8 travelers on the *G's reservation.
> 
> When the airline dishes out lemons, make lemonade


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## camachinist (Jan 14, 2010)

UA followed. 

Relevant baggage fee page on UA

Enjoy


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## UWSurfer (Jan 14, 2010)

*Nudists urge airline baggage fee payback*

http://www.travelmole.com/stories/1140411.php?mpnlog=1&m_id=_rn_r_r~A~A


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## dougp26364 (Jan 14, 2010)

Apperently, the one thing raising bag or other fee's does rather than raising the price of the ticket is avoid paying airport taxes on the cost of the ticket. I recall reading somewhere that the fed was losing money on these fee's because they're not taxed. Having that stream of revenue diminished means less money for the airports. If this is true and it continues, I look for someone to step in and either start taxing "other" income the airlines receive of put regulations in place limiting how much they can charge. For now it's essentially a run away train and the only option to stop it is stop flying.


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## Carolinian (Jan 15, 2010)

I don't disagree with the checked bag fees in prinicple.  It is one of the ala carte things that passengers can choose to use or not.  Why should those of us who travel light pay for those who take half their wardrobe on a week's vacation?

The one I strenuously disagree with is the ''fuel surcharge''.  Fuel is not discretionary.  It is necessary to fly the plane and deliver the basic product the customer has purchased, air travel.  Even more annoying is most airlines tendency to put this on the ''tax'' line like it was being charged by some government, airport authority or other third party when in fact it goes straight to the airline.  Putting this on the tax line is simply dishonest.  Then some will charge it as part of the ''taxes'' on award tickets, which as far as I am concerned is nothing but outright fraud.  The result is that sometimes now on some airlines the ''fuel surcharge'' (YQ) is more than the airfare!  Or as some seeking Delta (the worst offender among US-based airlines but only against foreign based customers) award tickets have discovered, many times the ''taxes and fees'' of an intra-Europe DL award ticket come up to more than the all-in cash price on another legacy carrier for the same route and days.


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## camachinist (Jan 15, 2010)

Yeah, there are some of us who actually look for fares with a high YQ. It helps keep the baggage fees non-existent


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## Carolinian (Jan 15, 2010)

camachinist said:


> Yeah, there are some of us who actually look for fares with a high YQ. It helps keep the baggage fees non-existent



You ought to try living in Europe, where unscrupulous airlines (Delta being the only one from the US to use this practice) charge the YQ as part of the tax when you book an ''award'' ticket.  It adds about $200 to a TATL ''award'' ticket.  Even intra-Europe, it can make an ''award'' ticket booked through Delta cost more in ''taxes and fees'' than the all-in cost of a revenue ticket on another legacy carrier.  The real danger is that DL will start charging these YQ's to those of you living in the US, too, and that other US-based airlines may copy them.  Better to drive a stake through the heart of this monster before that happens.


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## camachinist (Jan 15, 2010)

I think the last IFC award trip we took on UA to SYD was about 176.00 in taxes, but no YQ. We won't know if the tricks with YQ will work on awards until they start charging them. The bugger is having to do the deals over the phone as web functionality for the methodology doesn't exist for most airlines via web booking (for awards). Once someone starts charging, we'll be sure to test it 

I've noticed DL getting real aggressive of late out of our local, so perhaps it's a good time to get a status match and eliminate bag fees that way and maybe do a few MR's when they have a 2xMQM promo. I noted their rollover miles feature. That's interesting.


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## w879jr1 (Jan 15, 2010)

*What should they charge?*

This is a great thread, and I always enjoy Carolinian's view on these matters. IMHO the original Southwest Airlines's model still beats its European imitators.

What should it cost an airline to carry you? Fundamentally, weight is the prime issue. Please weigh me and all my baggage, hold and carry-on, and give me a price. That is what it will mean in terms of fuel to be used.

Then there is service. At my age I would like a better seat with extra legroom, and I will eat the food that is provided by the airline (or not). Maybe the hostess/steward will smile if we both know the terms of this arrangement. This will provide the appropriate surcharge for "service".

We now come to the taxes. In the UK, our current George III (aka Gordon Brown) has jumped on a save-the-planet issue to penalise flight from the UK. I think that the regions of England and Scotland should consider a revolution against this London-imposed tax to encourage flights into/from Birmingham / Manchester/ Glasgow / Edinburgh / Belfast and the many other airports in the UK.

I have identified 3 fare components above and airlines can compete on A and B, and if A+B are lower then C (taxes) should be lower, but we all know the latter is never such a simple formula.

In the end, sadly, we pay what the airline marketeers and politicians decree.


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