Originally Posted by
SparseFlyer
Personally, idc about fuel surcharge as long as the overall price makes sense.
I feel like worrying about components of a fare is like being upset about how McDonalds segments their hamburger prices.
Picture this: "Excuse me sir, but you indicated that the meat surcharge of the McDouble is 49c, but you have not dropped the price since the last time beef prices went down."
I think the point is that McDonalds wouldn't dream of putting in a "meat surcharge" and if they did such a thing they would be getting pushback.
In the transportation industry, a fuel surcharge is not uncommon - it is a way to deal with one input cost that fluctuates wildly while the others remain fairly stable. Transportation users would be screaming at their trucking and shipping suppliers if the fuel surcharge wasn't declining when the price of fuel declined. they would not accept the fig leaf that the company had relabeled the fuel surcharge with a new name.
The point is that AC and the airline industry has turned this surcharge concept on its ear - they are refusing to budge on the admin/carrier/fuel surcharge (which was supposed to be the thing that varied) but have been madly fiddling with the base fare (which should be covering the "stable" costs) in order to show a competitive all-in price.
All this to allow them to:
1. Pay lower commissions to travel agents
2. Offer discount codes that provide very little actual discount
3. Earn lots of money on "free" points redemptions
Originally Posted by
SparseFlyer
The only legitimate complain about fuel surcharges (IMHO), are how they relate to discount codes and point redemption.
For some that is rather like saying "other than that Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"