Planning a summer trip? Planes will be packed

Q: Are we going to see more of this kind of thing?

Yes. We're probably going to see just about every airline doing something like that. It has become a tremendous revenue source for them. United Airlines now has their Premier Plus coach seats. Pay a little more and you get more leg room. You're going to see more and more of that.

When you think about it, you pay more to have a better seat at a ballgame, you pay more to have a better seat at a concert, why shouldn't you be willing to pay more? And I'm willing to pay more, to have a better seat on a plane.

Q: Airlines are selling meals, renting entertainment systems, and starting May 5, most passengers with an economy fare on United, Delta, Northwest, U.S. Airways and Continental will pay $25 each way on a roundtrip ticket to check a second bag. What’s that all about?

The airlines are looking for every possible way to knock weight off those planes. And they’re looking for every possible revenue source. If Northwest could drop 25 pounds off of every plane, it would save $400,000 a year in fuel costs. Think about that. If fuel prices keep climbing, we may see them charge for the first bag.

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Q: The already sell coach passengers meals and snacks. What’s next, charge for the beverages?

I think a buck for a can of soda is right around the corner.

Q: So what’s really going on here?

I call it ala carte ticketing. When you buy a ticket, you get a ticket from point A to point B. If you want anything else, you can pay for it. It's not so much, 'You get what you pay for.' It's, 'You pay for what you want.'

Crossing the pond
There is one bright spot — for those headed to Europe. Thanks to the new open skies agreement, airlines can fly between the U.S. and Europe without getting approval from any government agency. They just need a plane and a place to park it at an airport.

Trippler says this means more seats to Europe. The extra capacity will mean more options for travelers. It also should help keep a lid on price hikes.

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