It has been years since I flew domestically in the US so the baggage fees that I encountered recently were shocking. In Europe, it's typical to charge baggage fees when you have a $50 (or less) flight with a discount carrier. Getting slammed with $25 fees when the ticket is with a major carrier and a standard (expensive) fee is excessive. It's no wonder Southwest is capitalizing on this gouging. CNN:
At the top of the baggage fee revenue list is Delta Air Lines, followed by American Airlines and US Airways.
In three quarters, Delta already has surpassed its total baggage fee revenue from 2009. Delta has made $733 million so far this year. In all of 2009, it made $481 million.
Revenue from baggage fees has been skyrocketing since 2007, when the total revenue was $464 million, one-fifth of what's been made in three quarters in 2010.
Similarly, revenue from cancellation and change fees has nearly doubled since 2007, adding up to about $1.7 billion in three quarters this year, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. In 2007, fees totaled $915 million, though 2010's numbers actually fell 3.8 percent in the third quarter from the same time last year.
