How much is that one seat on the Window?

I can remember the first time I went to a fancy cafeteria (if you can have such a thing) with my grandparents. I loved the idea of collecting plates of food as my journey progressed, sliding my tray from Jell-o salads past vegetables to desserts and finally to the cash register. My grandfather was less enthusiastic about the final tally of my dish-laden landscape.

What's this have to do with travel? Plenty. Airlines are borrowing one from the cafeteria playbook: a la carte pricing. In the past, travel was an all-you-can-eat buffet; today, the traveler is faced with a pay-as-you-go menu where any additional item has an additional cost.  Since airfares have remained somewhat stable since 2001, while fuel prices have almost doubled, airlines are looking for every opportunity to generate extra revenue. Just in the first quarter of 2008, U.S. airline losses ranged between $500 million to $6 billion.

Every major U.S. carrier is charging $25 for a second checked piece of luggage beginning in May.  Even if you have just one suitcase, you need to consider its weight. In most cases, the fee is $50 for anything over 50 pounds and up 70 pounds. Anything exceeding that weight is usually prohibited or prohibitively expensive to check, usually around $100.  

And should you wish to check your bags curbside, expect a fee of $2-3 per bag when traveling on American, Delta, Northwest, United and US Airways (not including tip).

Most international flights now have additional ticket surcharges to offset fuel prices. For long haul flights it can be in the hundreds of dollars. Another area for income generation comes in the form of ticket changes where some carriers are now planning to increase ticket change fees to $150. 

In the realm of seat assignments, airlines are beginning to recognize the value of a coveted window or aisle seat and charge accordingly for that added comfort, anywhere from $5 -$35. An exit row seat is fair game if you wish to ante up a little extra to secure it. In most cases the seats become available for purchase online 24 hours prior to departure.

As airlines scramble to offset fuel prices, travelers can expect to encounter new fees or surcharges for services that once were included in the price of the ticket. If you want to save on fees, there are a few you can affect. But even if you pack lightly, bring snacks, charge up your MP3 player and stick with your itinerary, it looks like the all-inclusive air fare has no intention of booking a return flight.

And since I brought up luggage earlier, here are the latest baggage allowance links by airline.

AirTran
Alaska Airlines
American Airlines
Continental Airlines
Delta Air Lines
JetBlue
Northwest Airlines
United Airlines
US Airways

Tom Conway, who learned the difference between a cafeteria line and a smorgasbord at an early age, says share your comments about airline service fees.

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With over 2,000 people a month seeking to clear their good names from the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) terrorist watch list, the DHS has proposed a solution, USA Today reported. Travelers who have been repeatedly delayed and/or detained because their names match those found of government watch lists, will be asked to provide more detaled information to substantiate and establish a record of identity for the airline. The measure requires the traveler's personal information to be held by each airline used by the traveler. Read more: ID plan meant to clear fliers of suspicion

Has your identity ever been mistaken while flying?

Share your experience and comment here.

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I write a lot of correspondence and in doing so I found myself closing emails or missives with Safe Travels. Sincere in its intent, I find this particular closing the ultimate priority in any traveler's mind, that of a safe journey and return home. It's caught on; and not surprisingly it's how many of us individually and on a corporate level sign our emails.

This week, Investor’s Business Daily interviewed Expedia Corporate® Travel's Senior V.P. of North America, Rob Greyber about the new concerns about travel safety on a global scale and what solutions are available to travel programs to ensure the safety of every company's business traveler. Read more below.

Investor’s Business Daily

Expedia Has Turned Into the Security Arena

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If you think the safety-check fiasco that suddenly grounded nearly 3,000 flights in early April is a distant memory, you might want to think again. With increasingly vigilant inspections planned into the summer, travelers should expect the unexpected.
FAA audits will continue through June 30, and spokeswoman for the organization said that further cancellations can’t be ruled out. The crack-down has been a long time coming, but in many ways it seems to have caught airlines off guard, resulting in massive numbers of stranded travellers.
The stricter safety inspections and the airline industry’s collective surprise stems from a previously cozy relationship that went south following accusations that the FAA has been too lenient.
Flightglobal.com quotes Transportation Department inspector general Calvin Scovel who said: "What we have seen from the FAA on too many occasions is, you just put in a wink and nod instead of a demonstration of true will."
That’s a serious smack-down for a federal agency in charge of ensuring compliance with safety standards, and it left the FAA with something to prove. The airlines have been put on alert, but they seem to be waiting for things to chill out, all the while complaining that the FAA is inconsistent, unreasonable and mean.
In the struggle between the FAA and the airlines, business travellers will surely be the ones grounded.

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Air France officially ran away from the Alitalia altar this week after months of union opposition and verbal jabs from Italy’s prime-minister-elect, Silvio Berlusconi, who called the bid “humiliating.”

What’s a spurned airline to do? Italy can’t bankroll the flailing airline forever, but it did recently approve a $475 million emergency loan, providing short-term stability until the next lucky suitor comes along. But even the loan is precarious, as Italy might have broken a few European Union state aid rules.

That means Berlusconi is forced to play matchmaker, and has reportedly lined up an unnamed Italian business group that will be making bids on the airline, a move that’s sure to spark the interest of other airlines. We’ll believe it when we see it, as the story sounds suspiciously like the imaginary girlfriend abroad.

It’s more likely that Alitalia is getting the eye from Aeroflot, with Forbes.com reporting that the Russian Airline was "waiting to have an offer to get back to talks."  Aeroflot is interested, but has made it clear that Alitalia must do the courting.

While the wheeling and dealing of the airline industry might be scintillating, business travelers should know that there is a very real chance that Alitalia could declare bankruptcy and abruptly cease operations. Avoid the drama and book elsewhere.

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Perhaps the headline is a little dramatic, but there is definitely a sense of unrest in the air, especially regarding the Delta and Northwest merger and what it means to travelers. Add to that the speculation of other airline mergers and 'merger madness' might not be considered to off-base a term. The coming weeks will tell.

US News & World Reports offered its insight to what it all means in 6 Ways Airlines Mergers Will Affect You. 

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Spanning the globe as the world's largest airline

Rumors about a merger between Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines began months ago and speculation ran high that it was not so much a question of if but of when would the consolidation occur? Yesterday the announcement was officially made: Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines would merge to become Delta. Airline officials said the merger would crreate a more stable platform for future growth, and offset the economic pressures from rising fuel costs and global competition.

Consumers are worried it will mean diminished service to small communities, less competition and higher fares. And while the merger will likely play out slowly and in stages, it's important to note that Delta and Northwest have complementary route networks with not much overlap. In fact, the combined systems will touch every continent on the globe. Delta also stated it would not close any hubs.

The Delta site provides some good information about the Delta and Northwest merger and its viewpoint on what the consolidation means to employees, customers and communities.

Here are some views from Delta and Northwest's hometown hub newspapers, respecitively: Detroit Free Press and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

This will likely not be the final word in domestic carriers merging. Speculation continues as United Airlines and Continental Airlines have been linked to merger talks. Read more.

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The following is a nonpartisan public service announcement.

You may want  to schedule accordingly if have you have travel plans during the Democratic and Republican national conventions in Denver and Minneapolis between August 25-28 and September 1-4, respectively.

Flights, hotels and dining establishments will be running on all cylinders to accommodate the large influx of conventioneers and media personnel. Or perhaps, you want to attend and make a little history.

Democratic National Convention

August 25-28

Denver, Colorado

http://www.demconvention.com/

Republican National Convention

September 1-4

Minneapolis, Minnesota

http://www.gopconvention.com/

 

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