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Airlines expected to add new fees in coming year(Beaver County Times (Beaver, PA) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Dec. 14--If you think airline fees for first and second checked bags and various in-flight amenities are irritating, just wait until you have to pay extra to check in for your flight on a self-service kiosk. That fee is one of many new ones domestic airlines are considering implementing in the next one to three years to boost revenue, said Jay Sorensen of IdeaWorks, a Wisconsin-based airline consulting firm. "Airlines will become more revenue-aware in all customer interactions," Sorensen said. Airlines started implementing an array of new fees for amenities and services that once were free or included in travelers' airfares earlier this year as oil prices soared to record highs. But as fuel prices have fallen, the new fees have remained. They are expected to generate billions of dollars a year for the nation's airlines, including up to $500 million this year alone for US Airways, Pittsburgh International Airport's busiest carrier. "The genie is not going back into the bottle," Sorensen said of the new fees. IT WAS NEVER ABOUT FUEL Sorensen said it was a mistake for airlines to tie the new fees to increased fuel prices. "As we move forward and more fees are added, customers are going to realize they were lied to. I think it would've been better if they (airlines) said from the start, 'We're putting these fees in because we like money,' instead of tying it to the price of fuel," Sorensen said. But tying the new fees to fuel prices probably helped stifle customer backlash. "Customers knew very well what was happening to the price of fuel, so they almost accepted their fate and did not revolt. I think the airlines expected headlines in travel sections to be screaming bloody murder and for there to be some protest at every airport," Sorensen said. "They were expecting the worst, but that didn't happen. I think that level of reaction gave the airline executives permission to go further," Sorensen said. Elizabeth Merida, a spokeswoman for the Air Transport Association, a trade group for the nation's major carrier, agreed that airlines will go further in trying to boost revenue. "Originally, a lot of those fees were born out of the summer fuel crisis, but now there's definitely been a shift in their overall business practice. Carriers like to be able to offer their customers the lowest possible fare and then (charge them for) a choice of different amenities or services they want to add for their trip," Merida said. "Airlines aren't designing their business plans to break even. The goal is to have several years of profitability," Merida said, adding the additional revenue will help carriers improve their fleets and operations. WHAT'S IN STOREAmong the potential fees, Sorensen said, will be that airlines will start charging extra for checking in at staffed ticket counters or self-service kiosks. "Charging for checking in at the ticket counter will happen because there's human service involved. Charging for the kiosks will happen because it is a convenience, the kiosks need to be maintained and it's a way to drive more people online," Sorensen said. But once online, customers seeking to book travel with a credit or debit card can expect to start encountering added fees. Sorensen said those charges will offset transaction fees that carriers have to pay to credit-card companies or banks when their cards are used. Once in the air, food-for-purchase programs will start gaining acceptance on longer flights, though they will begin as "offers to upgrade the dining experience," Sorensen said. In addition to the fees, Sorensen said, frequent-flier programs also will be hit with more fees and, ultimately, miles will be replaced with points tied to the fare paid by the customer, not the distance traveled. FARE GAME --Checking in at an airport counter or self-service kiosk instead of online --Keeping the middle seat empty in a three-seat configuration --Fast-track security screening --Onboard access to Internet, e-mail or mobile phone --Paying online with credit or debit card --Early boarding privileges -- Seat assignments in the cabin's forward rows Source: IdeaWorks, an airline industry consulting firm To see more of Beaver County Times, Pa., or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.timesonline.com. Copyright (c) 2008, Beaver County Times, Pa. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |