If baggage fees and reservation changes on U.S. airlines last year were distributed throughout the world, every single person would owe them about $.90. Every. Single. Person.
$6.5 billion.
We’ll give your blood a few moments to come back down to a simmer.
More than half of that revenue comes from baggage fees alone ($3.5 billion), a number that has more than tripled since 2008 and increased by five per cent from 2013.
That number doesn’t even include “other revenue” generated from passenger fees – things like onboard food and beverage sales and pet transport – which has increased by 13 per cent from the previous year and now stands at $4 billion.
Unsurprisingly, it was a good year for U.S. airlines, who registered a $14.6 billion pre-tax operating profit in 2014, up 29 per cent from $11.3 billion in 2013.
And somehow we passengers are literally feeling the squeeze…
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