My good friend who travels on UA once a week with her dog is so outraged by the hike in pet fees that she is looking at other carriers which may offer lower fees for her in-cabin, 4 pound dog. She is now saying the h*ll with status, miles, points, etc. I wonder if others feel the same?

If I traveled with my pets often enough for it to matter, then yeah, it would be a consideration... just as if my preferred airline's fares were significantly higher (on average, not for any single flight) than other airlines. All of the fares and fees become a consideration.

For me, I don't travel with my dogs often enough for it to matter. But more to the point, I don't know of any airline that is significantly cheaper than UA these days. DL used to be, but is now more expensive. AA is now $100. Only NW may qualify as "significantly" cheaper at still only $80... but I strongly prefer UA over NW for my travels (for E+ in particular, but also for their route structure and Mileage Plus), and the fee difference doesn't outweigh those benefits for me. If I traveled once a week, maybe they would, although if I could afford to travel once a week, the fee difference probably wouldn't matter as much to be anyway. ;)

So, yeah, the fees are going up and it would be a consideration for determining my airline loyalty... but at the moment, I don't think the situation at the other airlines is really that much better.

I totally agree with this sentiment. I do not see any airline having a significant difference in their pricing to make a difference in my flying choices. At the end of the day, there are not enough people who travel with their pets to cause airlines to change their policies. My worry is that airlines will decide to NOT allow pets to ever fly in the cabin... they are already making it as inconvenient as possible.

If I traveled with my pets often enough for it to matter, then yeah, it would be a consideration... just as if my preferred airline's fares were significantly higher (on average, not for any single flight) than other airlines. All of the fares and fees become a consideration.

For me, I don't travel with my dogs often enough for it to matter. But more to the point, I don't know of any airline that is significantly cheaper than UA these days. DL used to be, but is now more expensive. AA is now $100. Only NW may qualify as "significantly" cheaper at still only $80... but I strongly prefer UA over NW for my travels (for E+ in particular, but also for their route structure and Mileage Plus), and the fee difference doesn't outweigh those benefits for me. If I traveled once a week, maybe they would, although if I could afford to travel once a week, the fee difference probably wouldn't matter as much to be anyway. ;)

So, yeah, the fees are going up and it would be a consideration for determining my airline loyalty... but at the moment, I don't think the situation at the other airlines is really that much better.

Don't forget; NW's fee will probably go up to match DL's post-merger.

-A

Well if I were a snowbird in Manhattan and would normally fly DL to FL in the winter time I might consider a switch to AA at this point in time as we are speaking about a large sum of money. That $200 difference weekly really adds up if I were a typical snowbird that travels back & forth weekly for the season. @:-)