Expect More Baggage Fees on Split Tickets...

Airlines are beginning to take advantage of new DOT rules that went into effect on July 24, 2012 mandating new baggage rules requiring airline passengers to pay the same published baggage fees and have the same allowances for their entire itinerary. U.S. Airways just issued a "New Baggage Policy" as follows: New baggage policy – interline through baggage check discontinued Effective July 24, 2012 the DOT has mandated new baggage rules requiring airline passengers to pay the same published baggage fees[1] and have the same allowances for their entire itinerary. As a result of this new policy, effective August 1, 2012 US Airways will no longer be through checking passengers’ bags when they have been ticketed on separate tickets. For interline itineraries where the passenger has their entire journey on one ticket, we will continue our practice as it is done today, however when the tickets are split (e.g. ticket 1 US PHX-HNL // ticket 2 HA HNL-LIH) we will only check the bag to the destination on the US Airways ticket. A ticketing and baggage agreement is required to ticket interline itineraries on one record (PNR). Published minimum connect times are only valid for interline itineraries; minimum connect time cannot be precisely calculated when bags are not through checked. [1] Carriers are not required to recognize exemptions to other carriers’ baggage policies such as free first or second bags due to frequent flyer status or loyalty credit card membership. The carrier’s published baggage fees or US Airways’ baggage fees must be charged, depending on a variety of factors including first marketing carrier and/or most significant marketing carrier. The result is that if there is no interline agreement which would necessitate the issuance of two or more separate tickets, passengers are likely to see double or more baggage fees. www.premieretravel.com

Another Fuel Surcharge Increase?

Early last month, we pointed out in this column how airlines suddenly get quiet when the price of jet fuel goes down and that they never roll back the surcharges that they quickly introduce when fuel prices go up. The Airlines For America (A.K.A. A4A) which represents airlines interests publishes the Argus US Jet Fuel Index on their website. Jet fuel is currently around $3/gallon. No reduction was undertaken by the airlines when the price per gallon went down from about $3.35 to $2.60. People would have been screaming at the gas pump if retailers kept their gas prices elevated despite the big drop in crude. Nobody seems to be raising a fuss on behalf the nickled and dimed traveler. Even the Department of Transportation (D.O.T.) has mandated that airlines must justify and explain their fuel surcharges, but it has been totally ignored. Since this is an election year, it is unlikely that the DOT will act to protect travelers. Now that jet fuel has gone up from the low of about $2.60 a gallon to $3.00, but still well below the April highs, we hope the airlines do not get tempted on embarking on another increase. www.premieretravel.com

On The Horizon: Airlines Will Likely Introduce Credit Card Surcharges

Visa, MasterCard and several banks have agreed to a $6 billion dollar cash settlement with retailers and merchants who accuse the card processing companies and the banks of colluding and price fixing. More important than the financial settlement is the fine print that will allow merchants and retailers to have leeway in their pricing. Merchants/retailers may either discount prices for those who wish to pay by cash, something that was prohibited before, or, introduce a surcharge for credit card users. Airlines, already sensing another fee opportunity will certainly not discount their fares. The surcharge would most probably be the quickest way to goose up their revenue. In Europe, Lufthansa, among others, already has a "surcharge" for the use of credit card built into their fare calculation. Airlines will likely argue that the travelers are receiving points and rebates of up to 4% on air travel, and airlines are among the largest merchants processing several billion dollars in credit card charges. They will be very eager to shave a percentage or two of these massive amounts by passing the cost back to the traveler, unless the traveler uses the airline's own brand of credit card. The system is already in place as most of the major carriers have their own branded credit cards. We shall stay tuned for this, but the airlines are already working on the possibilities. www.premieretravel.com

Demand Concerns Spur More Capacity Cuts

Delta, United and American pruned more flights for the remainder of 2012 amid signs of slower demand. While summer numbers appear healthy, airlines are taking no chances, and by keeping a tight inventory, the pricing would be firmer. www.premieretravel.com

The Fly America Act Needs an Update

The Fly America Act was enacted to mandate the use of U.S. flag carriers for travel paid for wholly or partially by the U.S. government, under rules and conditions that have been revised over the years. Many airlines, American and foreign, are gaming the process and creating opportunities for windfall profits from this act and take advantage of the restrictions required when conforming with the rules and regulations. Through the use of code shares, joint ventures and alliances, these airlines are now leveraging the markups and profits by simply lending their names to foreign carriers that are designed to meet the requirements only by name, while the actual equipment, crew and facilities actually belong to foreign carriers. By simply slapping a code share U.S. flag flight number, a flight becomes eligible and conforms to the "Fly America Act" and usually carries a premium mark-up for the American flag carrier at the expense of the government and taxpayer. The Act has inadvertently created some unintended consequenses and many unnecessary complexities. Fly America Act was not intended to line the U.S. flag carriers' pockets. www.premieretravel.com

Fare Shopping Online: It's a Jungle Out There

Travelers have come to discover that airlines and online travel agencies discriminate in their prices and offerings depending on what operating system you are using in your search.  We believe that this is only the beginning.  Cookies and other means are utilized to determine your location, shopping habits, seach queries to give advertisers and providers the means to infringe on your privacy and calibrate the prices and offers based on your zip codes, demographic factors and other mined data.

The internet is a wonderful thing, but browsing privacy and the methods you use to conduct your searches will yield different results to different users.

At the end, this will undermine the system and create serious privacy concerns to the traveler.  Your travel agent remains the best source for trusted information with top notch service and uniform pricing. www.premieretravel.com