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Baggage fees are an important activity for American Airlines, based in Fort Worth, generating last year a record $ 1.2 billion in business for the world's largest carrier.
And even the airline that claims the "free flight of luggage" – Southwest Airlines, based in Dallas – has raised $ 50 million by charging passengers for additional baggage. It offers passengers two checked bags without shipping costs.
Overall, the airline industry has accumulated $ 4.9 billion in 2018 by charging luggage fees to customers, according to new data collected by the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics. This is the most lucrative year since the airlines started the practice more than ten years ago.
Airlines are using baggage fees to increase their revenues for several years. American Airlines began charging in 2008. Its cost has gone from $ 15 a bag to the current $ 30 fee.
Industry lobbyists won a major victory last year by removing a provision in the legislation that would have limited the fees that airlines could charge for flight changes and baggage. The Reaffirmation Bill of the Federal Aviation Administration was signed in October by President Donald Trump.
Airlines like the baggage fees because they are not subject to the same taxes as the revenue generated by ticket sales. Fees are also not included in online ticket price searches.
According to the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index, however, these fees have significantly "negatively impacted" travelers' travel experiences. The survey found that leisure travelers, in particular, experience less satisfaction with regard to airlines when they are required to pay fees for checked baggage or baggage cabin.
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