Latest news with #airlinefees
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
'For frequent travelers, the costs add up'
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. 'I'm taking a stand against jacked-up airline fees by taking the middle seat' Blake Fontenay at USA Today Ordering a "plane ticket now is like buying a car — after you've made your purchasing decision and are ready to get on with the rest of your life, you're bombarded with decisions about add-on fees," says Blake Fontenay. Choices "must be made about how many bags you want to check, whether you want 'priority seating' and whether to add" insurance. Shouldn't "everybody get refunds if flights are cancelled, regardless of whether they've made an impulse buy for travel insurance?" Read more 'Remember the real victims of Jeffrey Epstein' Renée Graham at The Boston Globe President Donald Trump is "not a victim of a vast left-wing conspiracy. He's not a victim at all," says Renée Graham. Those "who most deserve empathy and answers are the girls — now women — victimized by Epstein and others. Trump is "getting what he deserves." The "focus shouldn't be on the president's latest attempt to use victimhood and lies as a shield from responsibility, but in inching closer to some small justice for the victims and survivors." Read more 'It's okay to go no-contact with your MAGA relatives' Sarah Jones at Intelligencer Young adults are "going no-contact with parents and other relatives, often because of politics," says Sarah Jones. The "usual narrative pits liberals against MAGA elders." Sometimes the "act of knowing a person leaves you with no choice but to move on without them." Though "shunning won't work as a political strategy, there are still natural consequences for the way we speak and behave." Politics "never stopped at the family front door. Why pretend otherwise?" Read more 'Ivy leaguers aren't auto workers' Dominic Pino at the National Review Why "do graduate students at private universities get to pretend they're auto workers or electrical workers?" says Dominic Pino. Thousands of "U.S. grad students at elite universities" are "now members of traditionally blue-collar unions." Graduate "students at public universities are sometimes allowed to unionize depending on state laws." Ivy Leaguers "can be transformed into auto workers and unions can coerce graduate students into paying them, as long as three out of five unelected lawyers agree." Read more Solve the daily Crossword
The Independent
11-07-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Heathrow wants to raise passenger fees to fund terminal upgrades
Heathrow Airport has proposed an ambitious plan to accommodate an additional 10 million passengers annually by 2031, contingent on an increase in airline fees. The proposal, outlining its strategy for the next five-year regulatory period, was submitted to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Friday, detailing upgrades to existing terminals as a means to boost capacity. The initiative offers a quicker expansion route than the government's long-term vision for a new runway at Europe's busiest airport, located west of London, which is not anticipated to be operational until 2035 at the earliest. The proposed 10 million passenger increase represents a 12 per cent rise on current numbers. To facilitate this growth, Heathrow is seeking to raise the average charge per passenger from the current £28.46 to £33.26. The CAA, responsible for overseeing airport charges, is now set to review the detailed plans before issuing its official response. The request comes amid long-standing complaints from airlines, which say that Heathrow is already one of the world's most expensive airports and have urged the regulator to reduce charges. Virgin Atlantic, British Airways ' parent IAG, the Heathrow Airline Operators' Committee (AOC) and the Arora hotel group have joined forces in an unprecedented coordinated attack on the airport's regulatory regime. They hope to persuade the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) 'to conduct an urgent and fundamental review into the way in which Heathrow, the UK's only hub airport and the largest in Europe, is regulated, for the benefit of consumers, businesses and the UK economy'. 'Heathrow has become the world's most expensive airport, with passengers and airlines today paying £1.1bn more each year than if charges were in line with equivalent major European airports,' the partners said in a statement. Meanwhile, Heathrow has blamed expensive building costs, its constrained area and large numbers of long-haul flights for its high fees. In a letter to the Transport Select Committee, Heathrow chief executive Thomas Woldbye said: 'One factor is that the airport's small physical footprint means a lot of our infrastructure has to be underground or built in a unique way, increasing the cost. 'We are also the busiest two-runway airport in the world, meaning the intensity of our operating environment is comparatively more complex and makes it much harder to make targeted improvements and investment while remaining operational.'
CBS News
27-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
As their policies shift, see how much U.S. airlines are making in checked bag fees
What to know about Southwest Airlines new fare options Checked bags are a big business for U.S. airlines, bringing in more than $7 billion in revenue last year, according to data from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. The fees have brought more revenue to the airlines than it ever had prior to the pandemic, the data shows. Airlines began shifting their checked bag policy in recent years to keep up with what they say are rising operational costs, including higher prices for fuel and increased wages. Most recently, Southwest Airlines announced it will start charging $35 for the first checked bag — after more than 50 years of only charging for a third bag. Changes at Southwest came amid mounting pressure from activist investors to improve its financial performance. The airline in September predicted that new fees would lead to $1.5 billion a year in revenue. Last year, JetBlue brought Uber-style surge pricing to bag-check fees, making it more costly to check luggage during peak travel periods. American Airlines also increased its fees in 2024 from $30 to $35 for the first checked bag. Breaking down the revenue from checked bags for U.S. airlines Checked bags brought in about $7.27 billion in revenue last year for Alaska Airlines, Allegiant Air, American, Breeze Airways, Delta Air Lines, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, JetBlue, Silver Airways, Southwest, Spirit Airlines, Sun Country and United Airlines, according to the government's data that was last updated on May 6. That is up from $7.07 billion in 2023, Bureau of Transportation Statistics' data shows. In 2022, U.S. airlines made over $6.7 billion in bag fees, another major jump from the $5.3 billion made in 2021. American, Delta and United — the three largest U.S. airlines — made over $1 billion each last year on checked bags — and their revenue from it has been climbing since the COVID-19 pandemic halted air travel in 2020. When the pandemic hit, total checked bag revenue plummeted to $2.84 billion in 2020, down from $5.76 billion in 2019. Kiki Intarasuwan Kiki Intarasuwan is a news editor for CBS News & Stations. contributed to this report.
