That will be $4 for your two drinks...plus a $5 tray fee, $4 smiling fee, $5 cup fee & $9 carrying fee.
Over the last year or so we have seen pretty much every major airline tax on fees to such items as food, drinks, seat assignment, pillows, blankets and checked bags to counteract the cost fuel, competition being fierce and the awful economy. But according to a report Sunday by Kyle Peterson at Reuters, airlines might have run out of items to charge you when traveling with them. That is good news to passengers…but will it last long? I mean the airlines are obviously hard at work thinking of new ways to “nickel and dime” consumers in order to make up for weak sales.
What’s next? Charging infant travelers? Asking for $5 to recline your seat? Penalizing you with an $5 extra if you do not put the seat back in the upright position? Make you pay $15 to carry on a bag? Or maybe add a $30 surcharge for a seat belt and life vest? As funny as those all might sound, you just never say never when it comes to this industry. As lousy as it has become to fly due to all the extra fees, can you really blame the evil airline suits? I mean American Airlines reported that they made a cool $2.1 billion in extra fees alone in 2008, that is up a whopping 60% since 2002!
Ah the friendly skies...please insert your debit or credit into the slot next to the toilet paper.
As long as airlines make the moolah, they will make new fees. Although no new fee makes customers happy, the backlash from US Airways soda fees were so bad that the airline later changed its mind and canceled their “buy on board” program as of March 1st this year. RyanAir might have sunk the lowest with their idea of “sticking it” to their customers when rumors came out that the low budget carrier was thinking of adding a potty charge for customers that needed “to go” when flying. I mean seriously Ryan? Wow.
So are airlines done with new fees? Ha!
