Delta is doubling the fee for a second checked bag, to a whopping $50. On the plus side, the first checked bag remains free, unlike American, United, US Airways, and others, who have a charge for the first checked bag as well.
It’s an interesting move. I’m guessing it’s not actually an attempt to raise much more money, but rather to dissuade passengers from checking that second bag, thereby keeping planes lighter and burning less fuel. If they really wanted to make luggage transportation a profit center, they’d add a first-checked-bag fee. (Who knows, they still might.)
So this seems designed to change consumer behavior, not rake in the bucks. And as irritating as a $50 fee is, I’d rather have no fee on the first bag and double up on the second one. Delta recognizes that sometimes you simply have to check a bag, and as long as it’s just one bag, you’re not being penalized. I appreciate that.
Update: Gary Leff’s comment entertains me:
Gee, maybe they’d make even more money if they increased the checked bag fee to $1 million.
Update 2: I’m not the only one to think this is designed to reduce bulk, not make money on the fees themselves. From the Dallas Morning News’ Airline Biz blog:
BestFares guy Tom Parsons offers up this theory on baggage fees — if passengers are discouraged from checking bags, the airlines can have space for more profitable cargo.
And they quote Continental CEO Larry Kellner on the success of that airline’s $25 second-bag-fee. Note how “effective” is defined here, and it’s not measured in fee-based revenue:
The second-bag fee has been very effective. In the domestic market, we are seeing about 60 percent reductions for second bags checked by affected customers, and for Latin, it’s about a 35 percent reduction without any meaningful problems at the TSA [Transportation Security Administration] checkpoints for onboard carry-ons.
This is very good for us as we save the weight on board our aircrafts, as well as the handling and mishandling bag costs.
RSS (FeedBurner)
Read with Amazon Kindle
Subscribe by E-mail
Follow on Twitter
July 30th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
As Supertramp once wrote, “Right, Right, You’re Bloody Well Right, You’ve got a Bloody Right to sa-ay.”
I think the first bag fee is designed to dissuade passengers from checking bags as well. Consider if everyone just carried on their single bag, and a personal items bag. The airline would be able to turn the plane a lot faster. Fuel costs might go down as people pack more efficiently.
Of course, this is not practical, but the second bag at $50 makes a lot of sense in reducing weight (efficient packing) and turn time (fewer bags to unload) and create a small amount of revenue from the people who are creating the pain (carrying more weight and slowing turn).
Well designed by Delta. If only this good design could carry over to everything else they do.
July 30th, 2008 at 7:12 pm
Unfortunately, far too many people carry too much crap in their carry ons. If your not on the plane early, there isn’t room for your bag in the overhead bins anyway.
July 31st, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Great article. Just got off a flight from Athens (we were filming Jet Set Life in Mykonos) and you could hear the whole plane grumbling about the new increases. Not alot of happy fliers here. Well done post.
August 4th, 2008 at 2:00 am
[...] your [birthday, Christmas, etc]. This will keep your loved one unsuspecting and help you to avoid airline luggage fees. (I’d think carefully about trying this with a boyfriend or girlfriend [...]
August 8th, 2008 at 10:14 am
[...] of course, has a fee for the first checked bag. Delta only charges for the second checked bag (but charges $50 for that bag). US Airways passengers each had a sizable carry-on, while many Delta passengers [...]
August 10th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Delta has just added $100 – per family member – to any golf and ski vacation when bringing your own…. The extra $$ does not sit well with me.
August 26th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
This nonsense will only end when online travel sites like Priceline and Travelocity show the fees associated with a fare in their price-sorting algorithms. You can surely turn a profit if you show a $10 ticket on priceline, and then charge $500 for a (mandatory) seatbelt fee…
December 10th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
[...] public links >> checked Birthday Party Drama!!! Saved by maroneykm on Fri 05-12-2008 Delta raises fee for second checked bag to $50 Saved by nalobi on Wed 19-11-2008 Citizen Journalism 101: Covering Events as Press Saved by [...]