Airlines to Begin Charging for Amenities

AP on Yahoo ^ | 4/3/06 | Leslie Miller - ap

[dhs12345]

Maybe there is a business here: sell your food for just under what the flight attendants are charging. Sort of like the guy at the front of Home Depot selling hot dogs.

[-YYZ-]

"United Airlines charges $24-$99 to sit in the Economy Plus section, which has five extra inches of leg room."

I'd pay somewhere in that range for the extra space, given the choice, at least for longer flights (anything over 2 hours, and maybe even then). That's my 6'3" on the subject.

[Kimmers]

My problem with flying is getting squished in a seat that is only comfortable if you are under 5 ft tall and only weigh about 90 lbs....

[Enterprise]

One to stand, two to sit, and toilet paper is an extra two dollars. (Basic idea was from the movie PCU.)

[Mark was here]

One to stand, two to sit, and toilet paper is an extra two dollars. (Basic idea was from the movie PCU.)

One pair of "Depends" 50 cents?

[joesnuffy]

well they could dump your 80 yr old disabled mom next to an affirmative action TSA employee who will yell at her and threaten her...and force her to stand and walk even though she has a doctors written order to not do any of those things as they may be life threatening...

TSA is above the law of common decency...to anyone but arab men between the ages of 18 and 45 that is...

If I gotta fly there.....I aint going...

[SAJ]

Exactly! Tip: be sure to use lots of fragrant spices in your lunch/dinner (ground cumin, 5-spice powder, fresh thyme, fresh ground allspice and so forth). Improves the cabin atmosphere enormously.

[Enterprise]

Either pay 50 cents for the depends or 25 dollars for the seat cleaning bill.

[corkoman]

The a la carte pricing approach is working for Southwest, which carried more people in the U.S. than any other airline.

Is that correct? Southwest has the highest domestic volume??? Dang.

[Polybius]

How fast do you think they'll waive the barf bag fee when little Billy starts spewing across three rows?

They won't waive the barf bag fee.

They'll just charge each passanger in those three rows a Vomit Protection Fee. ;-)

[CATravelAgent]

"United Airlines charges $24-$99 to sit in the Economy Plus section, which has five extra inches of leg room."

Here's a tip if you're flying to Europe. British Air has something called Premium Economy, big comfy chair with a foot-rest in a separate cabin from economy. Same meal and service as economy. It ranges about $200 to $500 over the cost of an economy class ticket, depending upon time of year and your departure city. Best way to get to Europe comfortably without breaking the bank.

[redhead]

Amenities?? They have AMENITIES???

[Drew68]

Airlines are starting to charge for many services that once were free — such as assigned seating, paper tickets and blankets.

The next time I fly to Europe I will gladly pay extra for an aisle seat. 9 hours from Atlanta to Paris was miserable next to the window!

Incidentally, when I flew from Paris to Kiev on a Ukrainian carrier I ordered a beer. When I reached for my wallet I was shocked to learn that beer was free! I wasn't expecting this.

[jiggyboy]

Exactly! Tip: be sure to use lots of fragrant spices in your lunch/dinner

LOL...set the tone with some shrimp cocktail, then put on a lobster bib, spread some newspaper over your tray-table, and then bring out a big Dungeness crab and work it over for an hour or two. "Excuse me, do they have any of those little shell-cracker plier-things in First Class?"

[BulletBobCo]

The call button is soon to be replaced with a bill slot/credit card reader.

[AlexW]

"$2.00 to go to the bathroom. It's coming!"

No problem for me.
I have never in my life seen the insides of an airline bathroom, and since 1999, I have flown from the US to Bangkok, Sao Paulo, and as many as 3 round trips per year to Europe.
It is mostly psychological.
I am trying to see how long I can keep my record.

[KarlInOhio]

I take my own food now. Much better quality and I get what I want, when I want it. :-)

When are they going to get the movie theater attitude: Outside food and drink is strictly forbidden. Violators will be made to walk the plank.

I'm waiting for airlines to start packing two people in per seat. $50 extra for the top spot. $100 extra for an attractive seatmate of the appropriate sex.

[cryptomc]

$2.00 to go to the bathroom. It's coming! That would be a great moneymaker! Leave one free bathroom back in steerage class, and charge for all the others. You ought to register your intellectual property before someone else steals it.

Except I would get seated next to the guy who refuses to pay for the bathroom and instead brings on his own Depends !!!

[massgopguy]

Okay folks, were passing around a bucket to take up a collection to lower the landing gear.

[lwg8tr]

The ideal scenario would be for large numbers of these people to simply stop flying. It wasn't all that long ago that airline travel was considered a luxury. Maybe it needs to become a luxury once again.

Amen! Yes the airlines are not living in a supply and demand world. Like homeowners insurance in So. Florida pre-Andrew, they are not charging enough and simply just want to gain market share. They are selling a seat at let's say an average of $200 roundtrip when the real price should be $300 to cover ALL their cost, not simply the cost of the flight crew, maintenance and fuel. When the airlines don't charge enough they have to get more and more creative in cost cutting. Most airlines have cut costs to the bone, working on 1% body fat and the reality of Darwinian capitalism is coming to pass. Like the opposite of collusion, market pressure and competition so strong that they all wind up putting each other out of business. If Delta, Northwest and the other major carriers would get sane and price the seats accordingly, after a rough patch where the discount carriers would die then the airline industry could emerge much healthier. Example is flights from Orlando to WPB are $150 roundtrip. I mean why is it necessary to fly when the car trip would take 2.5 hours? How much is the airline blowing on that route?