TSA Assessing Airlines Additional Amounts for 2005
 

The TSA is assessing airlines hundreds of millions dollars more in 2005 security fees.

According to this article, "Continental is being asked to pay almost $7 million more for 2005, which is considerably less than many other airlines. Dallas-based Southwest, for example, has been billed $24 million."

Talk about rubbing salt in the wound.

This may end up with airlines making "free tickets" -- using miles -- even less free ... especially as security fees get raised again and applied to award tickets. :(

And then there are all those other tickets on which we will have to pay more security fees. :eek:

This insecurity is costing us a lot. And the nickle and diming continues, on a bigger dollar basis. :(

Rather interesting that the healthy carriers may end up paying, and those in chapter 11 could get a free ride, or get away for pennies on the dollar.

It's long past time for all carriers to get together and tell the TSA to go pound sand.

Totally agree. Sad thing is, the airlines are probably the only ones Congress will listen too.

They must have a few more offices that need redecorated and probably a few lifetime achievement awards to hand out.

I don't know how many times I heard at work that they don't have money for something and we have to make due. TSA should be the same way. I'm sure there are a few things they could do for efficiency. No shoe carnival would be a good start.

Since ours is a Government by Bribery, you are absolutely correct. The airlines need to start putting those lobbying dollars to work and draw the line on unnecessary inSecurity.

Well, the bankrupt legacy carriers are too busy looking for bailouts from congress to cooperate with the remaining solvent carriers and fight this. It's like a darn Gotti shakedown :mad:

I seem to recall some discussion, a proposal by the administration IIRC, that would raise the tax to $7.50. Did Congress pass this? If so, when does it come into effect?

I wonder if they actually would, though. Ma and Pa Kettle still pay their bills. It'd have to be an all or nothing deal with the airlines ... if they aren't all involved, it won't happen.

Not yet. The September 11 Security Fee is still $2.50/segment, maximum $10 per round trip.

Most stupid tax enactment ever. Airline industry is obviously swirling in the toilet in November, 2001, and yet Congress passes a new tax on air travel. Since then, billions of dollars of airline losses (and billions of dollars of September 11 Security Fees collected).

^ ^ This is good news. The TSA is its own worst enemy. Go TSA!!

I agree.

Not only that, but taxes are just insane on plane tickets. Sometimes the percentage is upwards of 50% on a plane ticket.

I bought a plane ticket for my mother-in-law earlier this spring and the fare was around $132. $88 of that was the the airfare, $44 was in taxes. If the taxes hadn't been so much AA could have had a nicer chunk of that money.

The airlines are the only business that the government wants to tax back into profitability. And we can see how well that worked.

A quick way to get rid of this garbage:

From now on, all Congressmen/women will be assigned the SSSS. That will lead to awfully fast changes.

Mike

The legacy airline industry loves that logic, doesn't work for me, and I'm pretty sure Southwest/WalMart air agrees. Cut the taxes and the customer will get a cheaper ticket. Perhaps some people will fly more; for me I already travel as much as vacation/work allows - the money won't go into the airlines pocket.

The taxes on your ticket are "high" because they are segment based, i.e. $2.50 per segment max $5 one way $10 return. That's quite logical because each passenger must go through security - and that security is not tied to the price of their ticket. Similarly with Air Passenger Facility Fees, etc.