In response to the airlines’ increasing usage of fees for early boarding, nicer seats, and other amenities that were formerly included in the ticket price, a U.S. Senate subcommittee was scheduled to criticize airline executives on Wednesday.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, who chairs the subcommittee, stated that he believes the federal government need to examine and perhaps penalize the airlines for their use of what he called garbage fees, which he claims increase customer costs.
According to Blumenthal, seat fees are an airline’s only source of profit because they spare them from having to build additional seats or pay for other costs by letting passengers choose their own seats.
No one seems to be deterred by the fees. More Americans are taking flights than ever before.
Nearly 3.1 million passengers were screened at airports nationwide on Sunday, setting a new one-day record, according to the Transportation Security Administration. This year has seen 15 of TSA’s busiest days ever, with airport checkpoint traffic up 5% from 2023.
Executives at airlines object to the phrase “junk fees,” claiming they are only providing customers with choices.
Andrew Nocella, the chief commercial officer of United Airlines, stated in evidence prepared for the panel’s hearing on Wednesday that our customers who value affordability have the choice to select a lower-fare package and, in doing so, opt out of paying for additional amenities that they do not desire. However, we also have clients who want more services, and they are still able to select the ones they value, such as checked baggage or a seat with more legroom, for an additional cost.
Nocella concurred with critics who argue that surcharges should be transparent and explained in detail throughout the ticket purchase process rather than being a surprise to travelers.
Last year, U.S. airlines, led by American and United, collected almost $7 billion from checked baggage fees. Although that was only around one-third of what they had raised prior to the coronavirus pandemic, when the largest airlines eliminated change costs, they still collected an additional $1 billion in ticket-change and cancellation fees.
It’s difficult to pinpoint exact numbers for other fees, but last week the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations revealed that United, American, Delta, Frontier, and Spirit collected almost $12 billion in seat fees between 2018 and 2023. Charges for more legroom or an aisle seat close to the front of the aircraft were included in that.
Nocella, American Chief Strategy Officer Steve Johnson, Delta Chief External Affairs Officer Peter Carter, and Frontier and Spirit Chief Commercial Officers were to address the panel on Wednesday.
The Biden administration, including President Joe Biden himself, has frequently criticized airline fees.
When flights are canceled, airlines must automatically issue cash refunds for tickets and surcharges, according to a Transportation Department regulation that went into effect in October. The airline industry is trying to block a new rule that would require luggage and cancellation fees to be disclosed more prominently. Under President-elect Donald Trump, the rule’s future is unknown after an appeals court stopped it.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the airline sector are still at odds over fees and other rules.
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