Spirit Airlines, the Ryanair of the U.S., is pushing the airline fee frenzy to new levels with the introduction of fees for carry-on bags –- as much as a whopping $45 each way to put something in an overhead bin on a flight.
Spirit says it is dropping fares, particularly on the low end, as it imposes new fees. It may well be the first airline in the world to charge for carry-on bags — Ryanair, easyJet, Allegiant, AirAsia and other ultra-low-cost carriers don’t — yet. It’s doubtful bigger airlines will follow, but then again, it was once hard to imagine how aggressively former “full service” airlines embraced tacking on fees for airline passengers.
One advantage of fees for carry-on bags is that they’ll likely discourage fellow passengers from boarding planes like pack mules. Spirit’s chairman and chief executive, Ben Baldanza, says fees for checked baggage upset the balance between carry-on and checked items as passengers tried to avoid checked-baggage fees. The carry-on fee, he said, “will make our boarding faster and easier.”
Remind me not to fly Spirit Airlines.
-AL
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