Programs: UA 3P, US, AA, WN, TZ; HH, *W, MR, GP+ (non-elite on all)
Posts: 6,523
Quote:
Originally Posted by swag
I can see charging something, though, not to compensate the airline for extra service (since there really is none), but to deter the behavior.
Airlines do incur some extra liability even with in-cabin pets, in that they may have to deal with an allergy attack by another passenger (though pet allergies are rarely on that bad) and they may incur additional cleaning fees (in case of accidents, etc.)... but yes, I agree the fees are well into the unreasonable end now.
IMHO this is a poor move and will backfire on the airlines. It is bad enough that the price of tickets are skyrocketing. Now if you are a person that normally travels with your pet, you might think twice about booking your trip due to the overall high price you would have to pay for that flight.
Case in point are the many "snowbirds" that fly with their pets from the Northeast to Florida in the winter months on a weekly basis. They might be forced to cut back on some of that travel.
mke9499 just alerted me that DL has increased their in cabin carryon fee to $150 O/W and $300 R/T.
In addition, they have increased their [b]O/W fee for shipping your pet as checked baggage on all flights to $275 for travel within the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico and $550 for travel outside the United States, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
IMHO this is outrageous and will be unacceptable to most travelers. More people will make other arrangements for their pets and leave them at home.
If only all pets were as gracious as yours. We had a chocolate poodle onboard this evening that was not happy. Made himself quite known to the f/c cabin. Glad he eventually stopped, but made sure we all knew he was there on final approach.
Which, of course, may be DL's primary goal... transporting pets does increase their liability, whether in reality or merely perceived.
Considering that DL has always allowed pets onboard which includes their international servie as well as the fact that they do a large business shipping animals as cargo leads me to believe otherwise. IMHO this is a case of greed pure and simple. They probably figure that people that always travel with their pets will pay virtually anything to have them fly together. Case in point the snowbirds from the northeast that commute down to FL on a weekly basis in the winter. They always bring their animals with them for those trips.
Considering that DL has always allowed pets onboard which includes their international servie as well as the fact that they do a large business shipping animals as cargo leads me to believe otherwise. IMHO this is a case of greed pure and simple. They probably figure that people that always travel with their pets will pay virtually anything to have them fly together. Case in point the snowbirds from the northeast that commute down to FL on a weekly basis in the winter. They always bring their animals with them for those trips.
There is a limit, when competing carriers offer much lower fees for the same service.
Just booked a RT yesterday from FLL to the midwest. RT onboard pet fee on DL was $300; RT fee on FL was $138. Guess which carrier got the booking.
RSSrsvp, Alaska Airlines has increased their fee for pets in cabin or in baggage to $100 USD each way. I don't know when it took effect, but the sticky post above still states $75.
RSSrsvp, Alaska Airlines has increased their fee for pets in cabin or in baggage to $100 USD each way. I don't know when it took effect, but the sticky post above still states $75.
Programs: UA 3P, US, AA, WN, TZ; HH, *W, MR, GP+ (non-elite on all)
Posts: 6,523
Quote:
Originally Posted by cepheid
Speaking of which, you should update United's fees on the sticky, as those have gone up (effective Aug 18).
The AA entry should also be updated, as their fees are now $100 each way. I'd have posted these in the sticky thread, but it's locked... I would also recommend unlocking it, so that discussion like this can take place in that thread.
The AA entry should also be updated, as their fees are now $100 each way. I'd have posted these in the sticky thread, but it's locked... I would also recommend unlocking it, so that discussion like this can take place in that thread.
Threads like this are the appropriate place for discussing an issue like increased fares. The sticky thread will remain locked based on my experiences in the past with numerous posts cluttering up sticky threads. Please either PM me or post changes/corrections here with the link to the airline fee information and I will update the sticky.
