Gekko

USAir plans to charge customers for checking a 2nd bag. Express your outrage right now by emailing customer service:

http://www.usairways.com/awa/content...tionsform.aspx

mycatmiko

So? Pack lighter.

If this keeps the cost of my ticket down (and I check 1 bag), I'm all for it.

kayd

If it keeps them from raising the price of every ticket by $5 (a big "if" I know), I don't mind paying $25 extra on the one trip out of 20 where I might check two bags.

Gekko

Passengers will not travel with less.

Selfish morons already try to carry on everything but the kitchen sink, and this misguided policy will only further encourage such rude behavior.

(And for the record, I never check more than one bag when I fly USAir.)

http://www.usairways.com/awa/content...tionsform.aspx

wally34949

Learn to pack smart--with just one bag. If you need to take another bag, it's only $25. That certainly won't break the bank. You don't drive your car around town with an extra bag of cement in the truck of the car, now do you?

Next year, the airline will be able to say, "We lost only 1/2 as many bags this year as last."

Gekko

I hear you, but it won't happen. People will NOT travel with less.

They will carry on MORE, and we all will suffer the consequences of this misguided policy.

(Like I said above, I never check more than one bag when I fly USAir, and usually I check none.)

HRHDHD

It's not "only $25"; it's $50, at least if you intend to return with two bags as well.

While I admire the "travel light" philosophy, sometimes it's just not feasible. Last year, my husband and I took an Alaskan cruise. We live in Florida and took three checked-in bags total. We needed the space for heavy coats, hats, waterproof shoes, and other cold-weather gear, as well as for clothes to follow the various dress code nights on the ship. And we did laundry, so we didn't overpack--we brought what we needed to bring.

Congratulations if you can travel through Europe for 6 weeks with nothing more than a change of clothes in a Ziploc bag. Some of us can't travel that way, nor do we find it fun and exciting to do so.

rkkwan

Long discussion on same topic 3 weeks ago:

http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=35106240

beachdreams3

Thanks, Gekko, for posting the link. I received an email today from USAirways and had planned to contact them to express my unhappiness and inform them that they will no longer be my carrier of choice, so you saved me the trouble of finding their website.

I agree that this policy will cause problems for everyone, not just travelers who have to pay the fee, since people definitely will try to bring more and larger stuff on the plane to avoid paying the baggage fee.

wally34949

Have you considered a "nude cruise?" I had plenty of room in my suitcase for the booze.

RaymondLuxuryYacht

People who think travelers will actually pack lighter and travel with less stuff are naive.

I posted my opinion, as well as my politically incorrect solution to the weight vs. fuel problem, on my travel blog: www.stricklandia.com.

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FainaAgain

By expressing my outrage and not wanting to pay for the 2nd bag I will agree to higher air prices.

And as I never bring a 2nd bag, I will hurt myself financially.

Sorry, Gekko, I can't join your campaign.

Gekko

No, you won't. <b>Time is money</b>, and longer security lines and delayed boarding (and deplaning) are inevitable if this misguided, moronic policy takes effect.

The obvious reality is, people will carry on more and larger bags to avoid the charge. It is inevitable.

(And I never check more than 1 bag when I fly USAir, so the fee isn't my concern -- it's the hell it will create inside the cabin and in the security line.)

beachdreams3

RaymondLuxuryYacht,

I agree with you and expressed a similar politically incorrect solution on this forum in a post about UAL's policy change (link in a post above) and in my correspondence to USAirways. I'm a 115 pound female who travels with luggage that I can handle myself (wheels are great but people still need to be able to lift luggage and place it in the overhead bins). The travel process is going to get worse and slower for everyone as people bring more on planes, including heavier and larger bags. This will negatively impact security screening, boarding, and de-planing activities.

kayd

Does anyone have stats on just how many passengers would be affected by the 2nd bag rule? I suspect it is not many -- so many people do carry-on only, and most who check seem only to be claiming one bag when I'm at the carousel. The only time I check two is returning from a vacation where I bought stuff and had to use my extra folding bag. Apart from trips where sports gear (skiis, golf bags) must be checked, I think the fee would rarely apply to the average business or leisure traveler.

Gekko

Over 60% of leisure travelers check 2 or more bags.

wally34949

With the American Dollar so low, I never purchase much when I go out of the country.

Andrew

Don't express your &quot;outrage&quot; by sending a note to USAir - instead, express yourself by flying another airline that doesn't charge the fee. USAir doesn't give a damn how you feel - all they care about is whether you will stop flying them. If USAir's market share doesn't change because of this fee, why would they care how &quot;displeased&quot; you are?

I've already been expressing my displeasure at poor service and change fees by flying an airline, Southwest, that has good service and doesn't charge change fees.

In many ways, though, such a baggage fee makes sense. Why should someone who travels with a carry-on pay the same fare as someone who travels with two heavy suitcases? That extra weight costs more money in fuel. Shouldn't the passengers who cost more in fuel pay more?

Perhaps USAir would have been more savvy by offering a $25 <i>discount</i> per passenger who checks only one bag and then simply raising their fares $25? Same thing, entirely difference perception.

Grcxx3

When we vacation (in Europe or the US), we seldom have more than 1 bag per person (+ a small carryon per person), but we live overseas and when we leave the US in the summer I have LOTS of bags. Easily 3 per person - sometimes more if we are moving locations. So, I pay excess baggage anyway - but now I'll be paying even more.

I know I am in the minority, but this one hits me hard - especially since they dropped the allowable weight from 70 pounds to 50 pounds.

Melnq8

Hi Grcxx3 -

I'm in the same situation as you and have been for the past eight years. I've never flown US Air and don't plan to, but I do fly United, which I understand is also now charging for a second bag.

We fly enough on United and Star Alliance partners that we've been able to keep our Premier Executive status for the past five years, so we're still able to transport three bags each of up to 70 lbs per bag to and from the US.

We plan our travel so that our domestic flights in the US connect with our international flights without any stopovers, thus avoiding any excess luggage fees.

I assume you're a member of an airline frequent flyer program?

For what it's worth, when we started lugging our lives around in our suitcases (before we had any FF status), we were charged $150 per extra bag by United, so $25 doesn't seem unreasonable to me.

As you well know, living overseas has some definite perks, but the never-ending luggage issue isn't one of them!