Article states Delta made $863 million in bag fees, and $766 million in change fees

[General Lee]

Delta hauls $863.6 million in annual baggage fees
Atlanta Business Chronicle by Jacques Couret, Senior Online Editor

Date: Thursday, May 17, 2012, 4:45pm EDT


For the third year in a row, Delta Air Lines Inc. pulled in more baggage fee revenue than any other U.S. airline.




For the third year in a row, Delta Air Lines Inc. pulled in more baggage fee revenue than any other U.S. airline, according to data released Thursday by

The US Department of Transportation data, which shows Atlanta-based Delta (NYSE: DAL), which posted an annual profit of $854 million last year, also generated $863.6 million in baggage fees, BTS data show.


Also in 2011, Delta led its peers in cancellation/change fee revenue with $766.8 million, up from $698.6 million in 2010.



Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[Varmint]

This both good and bad. Here are the 2 different sides to reading this article:

Shareholder and Employee opinion: This is great, we are making money again !!!

Customer opinion: Fly Delta...get nickle and dimed to death with fees.

side note: BUT...customers are stupid so they will continue to pay the fees and pay more in the end then a more expensive all inclusive ticket. Good for Delta.

 

[Muskycat]

This both good and bad. Here are the 2 different sides to reading this article:

Shareholder and Employee opinion: This is great, we are making money again !!!

Customer opinion: Fly Delta...get nickle and dimed to death with fees.

side note: BUT...customers are stupid so they will continue to pay the fees and pay more in the end then a more expensive all inclusive ticket. Good for Delta.

Or you could fly an airline that spends 100's of millions a year on ads to tell you that your bag flies for free and then roll that cost into your ticket. Some people feel better when they hear free!! As the old adage goes, nothing is free, especially if the company advertises it. I wonder how much an ad(s) cost during an NFL game or to put ads on billboards in every major city?

 

[redflyer65]

I think Delta's 'Bags Fly Free'....with our credit card is a pretty smart way to play it. The planes are still full, with or without the DL fees.

 

[N1atEcon]

100's of millions

I think you took a drama pill today.

 

[Jar Jar]

I think Delta's 'Bags Fly Free'....with our credit card is a pretty smart way to play it. The planes are still full, with or without the DL fees.

Exactly. "Hey you don't want to pay the bag fee? No problem, sign here." Then all of a sudden people get suckered in to the skymiles mentality and then you become a "GOLD" member, striving for that medallion status - those free upgrades and skyclub access. O yea you've made it now! All the while Delta has taken your brain out of the market. You no longer look at other airlines when deciding to fly, because goddamit you're gonna be medallion some day, son!

 

[Linedriver]

Exactly. "Hey you don't want to pay the bag fee? No problem, sign here." Then all of a sudden people get suckered in to the skymiles mentality and then you become a "GOLD" member, striving for that medallion status - those free upgrades and skyclub access. O yea you've made it now! All the while Delta has taken your brain out of the market. You no longer look at other airlines when deciding to fly, because goddamit you're gonna be medallion some day, son!

I'm an aluminum member!

 

[1st Rate]

Good for Delta. Just like ANY other industry, if you want more stuff... you pay more for what you get. It is really a simple concept!

 

[redflyer65]

I'm an aluminum member!

Hey, it's the Gold of the next generation. We'll all have to pay more and get less!

 

[nwaf16dude]

I'm an aluminum member!

Hey, I think the correct terminology is "Aluminum Medallion"...and don't forget to capitalize!

 

[Full of LUV]

Exactly. "Hey you don't want to pay the bag fee? No problem, sign here." Then all of a sudden people get suckered in to the skymiles mentality and then you become a "GOLD" member, striving for that medallion status - those free upgrades and skyclub access. O yea you've made it now! All the while Delta has taken your brain out of the market. You no longer look at other airlines when deciding to fly, because goddamit you're gonna be medallion some day, son!

That's the best part, Frequent fliers / CC users are exempt from most normal bag fees, it's the expedia crowd and once every two year fliers (or frequent fliers with no brand loyalty) that suck up these fees.

 

[JohnQ]

Yep. I used to think the change and bag fees were bad ideas, until I saw the following exchange between a passenger and a gate agent.

Pax: "I'm scheduled for the flight to LGA an hour from now. I was wondering if I could get on this one instead?"

Agent: "That will be a $75 change fee."

Pax: "I'm Silver Medallion. Does that make a difference?"

Agent: "Sorry, we only waive the change fee for Gold and higher."

Pax (without ONE second hesitation): "Okay, I'll pay the $75."


So why shouldn't DAL or any other carrier charge the fees? The contract of carriage is between the passenger and DAL for the flight they originally booked. If they want to change that, that's great. Doesn't mean DAL has to grant it for free. Also, in most cases (and probably this one) it isn't so much the pax as the corporate travel office that is paying the change fee anyway.

 

[Dash Power]

Good for Delta. Just like ANY other industry, if you want more stuff... you pay more for what you get. It is really a simple concept!

This is the kind of mentality that will find them charging for the use of the lav someday.

Interesting without these charges Delta would have had a significant loss during those years. History has shown that at some point those extra charges will eventually not make any difference. Just like charging for meals and non alcohol drinks.

This type of bragging always turns into something different.

Good luck to us all.

 

[General Lee]

This both good and bad. Here are the 2 different sides to reading this article:

Shareholder and Employee opinion: This is great, we are making money again !!!

Customer opinion: Fly Delta...get nickle and dimed to death with fees.

side note: BUT...customers are stupid so they will continue to pay the fees and pay more in the end then a more expensive all inclusive ticket. Good for Delta.

This aint Amtrak. DL has to make money consistantly to eventually buy bigger airplanes to compete with the likes of your company, Emirates. You have to have big, NEW, airplanes to compete on Global scale.


Bye Bye---General Lee

 

[General Lee]

This is the kind of mentality that will find them charging for the use of the lav someday.

Interesting without these charges Delta would have had a significant loss during those years. History has shown that at some point those extra charges will eventually not make any difference. Just like charging for meals and non alcohol drinks.

This type of bragging always turns into something different.

Good luck to us all.

How do you combat higher gas? Oh, wait, you buy a refinery. That is one way of thinking outside of the box. Again, this isn't AMTRAK. Profits need to be made. Would there have been a big loss without the fees? Maybe. I'm glad there wasn't. That is what management should be pushing for, PROFITS. As far as paying for the toilet, the only airline that has stated they could do that was Ryannair in Europe, and it is a Southwest model LCC. Remember, SWA still charges for bags too, on the Airtran side. They could easily stop that if they wanted to, but for some reason they do not...



Bye Bye---General Lee