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Air travelers need to “fight back” — or else

July 9, 2008

We already know that fuel costs have practically nothing to do with the uptick in airline fees. But what we don’t yet know is what will happen next.

Sebastian Okser might. A frequent traveler and graduate student who now lives in Finland, he has been watching the surcharge spectacle from across the pond, and he believes he knows the airline industry’s next move.

“The new fees airlines have started to levy on its customers are absurd,” he told me. “I find it very hard to believe that the surge in fuel prices is to blame for most of it.”

Why’s that?

One of the obvious tip-offs is that they are not charging customers the same fees on international flights.

When I was an undergraduate, I was an applied mathematics major. But it doesn’t take a math genius to conclude that if they are charging for the fuel for bags on domestic flights then it will certainly cost 4 to 5 times more to fly a bag to Asia yet no fees are charged for this. I think this is outrageous.

Domestic airlines aren’t immune to this faulty logic, of course. European carriers charge for luggage, food and drinks. But they are different in one important respect.

It’s not uncommon for a round-trip ticket to cost under $75 including the baggage surcharges. For some examples just go to RyanAir, WizzAir, or just check out AttitudeTravel.com for a listing of all of the well known budget airlines in the world. The same practice occurs in Asia and tickets are still only a fraction of the cost of American tickets.

Okser points out correctly that European airlines are more profitable. Last year, for example, RyanAir posted a profit of 480 million euros after taxes.

How can American carriers continue to hemorrhage money while RyanAir sells tickets for a penny? It’s something Okser believes should be examined.

So what has to happen?

In my opinion people in America need to fight back. If the airlines win on these fees they will continue to levy them until it gets to the point where its cheaper to fly to Europe than it is to fly from New York to California.

When I am home in New York I refuse to fly the big carriers and unless its an emergency I will always fly Jetblue or Southwest. None of the other airlines deserve my money in my opinion.

When I fly to Europe or Asia, I will never fly an American owned airline because there is only one guarantee on these flights, they will price gouge me. To be quite honest, they also provide the worst service of all of the worlds airlines.

Interesting. Has it come to the point where the only effective response to the “feeing” to death of airline passengers is a boycott?

Perhaps.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

12 comments

  • Jasper

    I am boycotting my ass off. Took the bus to NY this weekend (Boltbus.com). $30 round trip. Was there in 4 hours and back in 4.5, despite holiday traffic. On the road, it was nice waving to the other Boltbusses, Megabusses, etc. All loaded up with boycotters. I even met an Amtrak boycotter ($180 for the same trip).

    Unfortunately, airlines interpret my boycott as an unfortunate result of the economic downturn, and react by whining about pain at the pump and implementing more fees as to not increase the “ticket price”.

    BTW: 4h is only 1-1.5h more than flying. And for those $30, I got dropped of on Manhattan. Not on JFK(/LaGuardia/Newark) with a $45 flat fee cab ride to get to Manhattan. All in all, a pretty cheap and price efficient trip.

    [Yes, last time to NY, I flew]

  • Wayne

    When I think quality, I think of EVA, Air New Zealand, Air France. When I think cheap, I think SkyEurope, RyanAir, even Quantas for some routes. When I think disappointment, I think Delta, United and American. This is sad, but a small bright spot in my otherwise horrid experience with American fliers would have to be Continental.

    Currently, Continental does not charge for baggage, nor does it charge for food. Booking frequent flier tickets has not been a problem yet. Maybe it is due to their convientent flight routes (my parents live in houston, I live in seattle, I travel for business to new york and california), and maybe its due to a “lucky sample” in that I only fly roughly 40k miles a year with Continental…

    Regardless of these facts, I have been impressed with Continental (or lets just say “not yet disappointed”). I sincerely hope that they continue to seperate themselves from the pack by continuing to allow free checked baggage and free meal without substancially increasing fares and decreasing frequent flier options.

    All that aside, as we all know, the US airline industry is in need of a LARGE overhaul… or maybe just more intellgent corporate executives!

  • April

    Jasper: I have also taken the BoltBus, from Boston to NYC and I loved it. More leg room than coach, comfortable seats, every row of seats had power outlets, and friendly drivers. Our trip was only $25 RT and there are certain days that you can get the first leg for $1. Next I’m going to Philly.

    Unfortunately, one can’t drive to Hawaii (where my relatives are). And Southwest and JetBlue don’t go there. I’m working on other options for my trip out next summer.

  • http://www.flyblu04.wordpress.com tnt

    I just think that these fees and new policies are absolutely absurd! Especially in conjunction with the security policies that are now in place due to 9/11.

    Every single time I fly, my bags are lost. I kid you not, EVERY SINGLE TIME. So how am I supposed to feel if the bag that I paid $15 to check gets lost? I am going to be livid. Especially when it is like pulling teeth to retrieve said bag.

    And how am I supposed to deal with paying $3 for a 20 ounce bottle of water when I could have easily packed a water bottle in my bag. But oh no wait, you can’t do that anymore because all liquids have to be under 3 ounces unless you purchase them after your security screening. I try to avoid those places like the bubonic plague. Dag.

    Add to that the elimination of meals on board…gah when will it end?

    How am I supposed to boycott it when they just brush it aside?

  • http://www.droopy.org Droopy

    The difference is that international flights are much more profitable than domestic flights for airlines in the US. Flights domestically fell below break even as fuel prices climbed. The fees are an attempt to get some of that revenue back without raising the price of the tickets themselves, which they believe would reduce demand more than the fees do.

    At least until they are able to cut capacity this fall, and let economics then drive the prices higher (with or without the fees).

  • Aimee

    Oh, I absolutely agree that we need to get someone in power to do something about the joke that is the airline industry. It’s becoming apparent that there are plenty of boycotters out there, but instead of the airline industry acknowledging that people are disgusted with the product, they blame the economy. Really, how stupid do they think we are? Hang on, don’t answer that.

    I must point out that there is a problem with the boycott idea. For example, I live in Iowa, but anyone in the Midwest feels the pain. We have drive an hour or two the Des Moines or Moline airport, where we have the choice of flying United or Northwest. Sometimes you can catch an AA or AirTran flight from one or another. There is NO Southwest or JetBlue or cheap flights. Our flights are double the price in Chicago and Minneapolis, even though they are only 3-5 hours away, depending on your location. Yet the cost of driving to those cities eliminates the savings. We HAVE to fly crappy airlines if we want to go anywhere beyond the Midwest. Otherwise it’s a 3 day bus trip to the west coast (on average) and a 2 day bus trip to the east coast (on average) and even if you drive straight through, you can’t get to any part of Texas in under 22 hours. What business allows for that? Can you imagine doing that with a car full of kids? For anyone in the Midwest area, you either have to fly crappy flights for ridiculous prices, or you have to stay close to home. A four hour bus ride may not even get you out of your state.

    I guess it was bothering me how easy people make boycotting airlines sound. It’s a great sacrifice for many people. I’m guessing they live on the East Coast where everything is in close proximity. I only wish we were all so centrally located. That being said, I have boycotted airlines and haven’t taken a flying vacation in three years.

  • Jasper

    @ Aimee: You can’t boycott airlines completely, unfortunately. My family lives in Europe, so unless I want to take a cruise, or swim, I need to fly.

    However, I have thrown out much other flights. If it’s less than 7 hours driving, I’m driving.

  • Anthony R.

    I have to visit family in Florida next week and am choosing to drive–although that is a 2 day drive from here. Nonetheless, the last time I flew Delta (Don’t Ever Like Traveling Again), my flight was delayed several hours (my 9 AM flight out of LGA was delayed 3 1/2 hours), they lost my luggage (it came the day I was leaving….) and I was met with surly service all around. The parking at LaGuardia was $30 per day (for a total of $210) and my flight back was not only 2 hours late (I got in at 9:30 PM, not at 7:30 PM), but it took Delta almost 90 minutes to get the luggage on the carousel….. I got home after midnight.

    It is easier and less stressful (and less expensive) to drive with my wife. I am boycotting airlines unless I have an emergency and have to be somewhere ASAP (which with the airlines is no guarantee).

    I think I speak for most Americans when I say that I wouldn’t care if the airlines all folded. New, more efficient ones will come in their places. My only regret would be for the people who worked for years and years and are now treated worse than the passengers.

  • r.savicki

    Chris,
    I was flying weekly to California from Nevada. I finally drove my car and now fly back to Nevada only once monthly. I also refuse to fly on anything but SOUTHWEST.
    My next ‘commute’ will be from Las Vegas to Phila., PA for about 4-6 months.
    Guess who is driving???
    I WILL NOT give a ‘pity party’ for airline who pay CEO’s like royalty.
    I WILL NOT accept baggage fees/paying for water etc.
    If the airline wants my business…..it can darn well show me it wants it.

  • Cleetus8

    I’m not sure how useful this will be…but don’t just boycott, make sure they know why they boycott. I just e-mailed United Airlines (see their website for how to contact…or Elliot has contact info on his site). I told them my frequent flyer number, how long I’ve been a frequent flyer (since ’98) and the fact that I’m not flying their airline again until they get rid of the first bag charge. I even got a customer service response. Not sure what that will do in the grand scheme…but if hundreds of people do it, they can’t ignore everyone.

  • John Herrmann

    I have cancelled three trips by airline this summer, and i plan around air
    travel now. In one case, it may cost me twice the cost to drive as to fly, but
    because of the attitude of the American carriers (the exception is Southwest, for sure) has made doing business with them an altercation at every step of the way. I have a choice, since I travel only for personal reasons, and I choose not to do business with an industry that insists on an adversarial relationship. If I must fly to get where I wish to go, I will not go.

  • Robert

    I also try to avoid the major American carriers and as I fly mostly to Asia, I have the luxury of choosing one of their excellent airlines. Just curious – what is the longest period of time you have stopped flying an airline because of bad service? In my case it is coming up on thirteen years for Northwest who was responsible for a terrible trip to Orlando. I never look at their prices as I would not step foot on one of their planes if they lowered the price to $1.00 per ticket.

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