Paying for what you value…like line jumping at Six Flags. I like it. Not just when I fly.
Professionally, I spend a fair amount of time talking about bag fees. And why they are good. Because they are. They help keep base airfare low and ensure that you only pay for services you use. And they make you appear 10 pounds lighter and 10 years younger.
I might have made that last part up.
I never check a bag. Ever. Which explains my aged and puffy appearance. I’m actually a 26-year-old, size 0 supermodel.
And supermodels are like the rest of us…in that they don’t want to pay more for airfare that includes the cost of a bag they didn’t check. In general, I don’t like paying for things I don’t like or value…like my property tax bill, or a new water heater or anything to do with Justin Bieber or Nickelback.
Let’s remember that this model of keeping the base price low, and then paying for optional services that one values, is not new. Nor is it unique to airlines. Consider car buying. Would you like a new Nissan Rogue? That will be $22,790. Oh, you want it to go in reverse? Make that $23,500. I kid. But really what do you expect when buying a car named Rogue? Apparently the Nissan Miscreant did not test as well in focus groups.
I took my kids to Six Flags Great America. I paid for the tickets. And, then made the equivalent of a car payment so that we could Flash Pass. Thankfully this involves no actual flashing…it just lets you get near the front of the line without waiting. I do this mostly because of my own insecurities brought on by the fact that, unlike so many in the line, I am without a date who is wearing a matching outfit to mine. And neck tattoos.
I took my oldest daughter for new glasses. We went to a store where she had gotten her contacts as she had a half-off coupon. She frets trying to pick out just one pair out of the eight she has winnowed her choices to. She finally settles in on a tortoise shell frame that looks great on her. I think the hard part is over. I am wrong.
Geremie…yes, with a G. I already feel badly thinking his parents never played the “how are kids at school going to mock this name?” game before putting it on his birth certificate…sits down with us.
He proceeds to tell us about lens types. And polymers. And sealants. And scratch resistance levels. Based on what he is recommending, she could wear these glasses in a brawl with rabid badgers and come out unscratched.
I’m already questioning the level of upsell (and full disclosure: I don’t wear glasses so I have no idea whether any of this is necessary, but do know the risk of a rabid Badger encounter is low), when he lays on the medical necessity upgrade.
“With your extreme astigmatism, you are really a hazard to yourself and all of the other pop ups in the Driver’s Ed movies—especially that kid with the ball—if you do not get the anti-glare protection,” Geremie says. (Not actually what he said…but definitely what I heard.)
He throws in the protection plan, and next thing I know for the price, we could have gotten two round-trip plane tickets from Chicago to San Francisco. And even pay for a checked bag.
If I ever did that.
notevenhalfwaythere 
A fine little essay, as always, but (there’s always one of them), wouldn’t the same logic on checked bags apply if the airlines allowed people to check bags free while charging a fee for a reserved space in the overhead compartment? Plainly, for many people, especially the business traveler who is in a hurry, it is desirable to carry a bag on the plane. That’s the person (or company) who should pay for the associated benefit. This sort of arrangement would speed up boarding and deplaning, too, as more people would move onto and off the plane without regard to luggage.
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That’s one of the great things about air travel…choice about who you fly. Some airlines do charge for overhead bin space. Others let bags fly free. Regardless of who you fly, though, overhead space is not an apples-to-apples trade off in terms of cost with checking a bag. You could consider overhead space as a fixed, one-time cost, paid for at the time of purchasing the aircraft. Not the same thing for checked baggage. There is a cost to checking a bag. There are the people who check your bags, put them in the belly of the plane and take them out of the plane at your destination. There is the technology that enables airlines to track your bag through its journey. There are thousands of miles of belts and conveyors that transport your bag from the check in counter to the gate. There are belt loaders and tugs that move your bag from one spot to another. And, there is all the real estate at every airport that houses all of the aforementioned things to be paid for.
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All true enough, and all relevant. But (and there’s always . . . ) all those costs could be met by the revenue to be charged for storing bags in overhead bins. Many business travelers would initially wince but then blithely comply with a $100 or even $200 fee to store a bag in a reserved spot. Besides, as we all know, prices are not set as a function of cost-plus-margin; they’re set at whatever the market will bear, and the equilibrium of the price for carry-on bags is likely quite high, as the demand (which is great, as your essay shows) far outstrips supply of overhead bin space (which is very constrained).
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I’ve been saying that for years…the market dictates the price, and customers vote every day with their wallet about what they value and are willing to pay for. I feel confident that if an airline discovers your proposition to be one that is profit-generating, and enables them to invest into their product for customers and provide a return for shareholders and employees, they will do so. (I don’t actually think I addressed demand outstripping supply…but your point is taken.)
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So Thomas wants the people who fly weekly to lower the cost for the twice a year vacation flyer who slows up every line in the airport and then puts their overhead bags in sideways, sits down and puts their seat back (Jean knows this a big no-no!). Let the weekly travelers have the overhead space and the vacation travelers should budget that extra couple hundred into their vacation savings plan.
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