As someone who has worked for an airline for quite a few years, I have to comment. Other than Southwest, every airline sold a phony story on what it costs to fly. Southwest is very good, yet people whine they don't get a steak, or seafood, or 1st class seating. All that crap costs money, mostly in terms of fuel costs. I would love to spend the time on a diatribe on actual costs to fly, but I know it would be a waste of time here. Out airline originally offered steak and lobster, then to less but on China, then less again, and then they were bought out after they were just a shell of the original company. People crack me up that they think they need even a snack while on a plane. Really? Unless you are international, or Hawaii your average flight is 3 hours or less. Hell I go that long without food daily while working, and I am probably a bit overweight. If you can drive somewhere for less than the cost of flying, do it and shut the hell up. Cripes you get from 1 coast to the other in less than 6 hours, and you whine because it costs money? Screw you morons. Try driving it and getting business done the same day, hmmm guess it doesn't work. Bags are weight, and that means fuel to cover that weight to get where you want to go. Within a reasonable amount that is covered in the cost of a ticket, but then there are the people that need to carry their entire closet, or families on vacation that carry the house. THat is a cost that has to be covered upfront or after. I bitch just the same, but I also pack only what I need. We used to have entire families trying to move via their seat on a plane. No kidding, no exageration. People would pack 10 bags, busting at the seams, that weighed probably close to 200 lbs. We didn't charge them for it. I often raised hell about that because it conditioned the customer to think they could fly from NY to CA for $200. They could, but when you throw in the extra garbage for even .25 of the plane the fuel load cost a fortune, and that was when fuel wasn't so bad. People need to put in context what they are getting. If you want to load your car and drive for 6 hours, while getting nothing done, feel free. It will cost you time, fuel, and maybe business. Then again, pay a bit more to cover the actual cost of flying, you get there and come home the same day or next day, and can move onto another customer. I relate my time at the airline to most everything, and try to figure out whether my whine is valid. Southwest is great at what they do, yet they have any number of haters. I'll fly them whenever I can for the savings, and hope the other dueche bags figure it out some day. Money has a value to me and my family, and Southwest seems to have figured out this industry where no one else has. That to me is mind boggling.
Nope, just a former airline employee. We started as a local, moved to a regional and made it to national. Then reality hit, and management was totally incompetent and didn't make any chages until way too late and those changes were not anywhere close to what was needed as well as a marketing story to sell it. I get a laugh out of unions selling thier story in this industry as they helped expidite the decline, but except no responsibilty. Again I say, if you can drive your car 300 - 500 miles or more and get business done for even $200 then go for it, otherwise quit your fucking whing and pay not much more to make alot more, and maybe vacation people would pay a little more too. For those losers that have to transport their house when they travel, FU. Are you kidding?! Quit being a woman, or so gay, oh my gosh does that offend, it shouldn't it is just an idea that people get for the stupidity of excess.
Ship your luggage via UPS ahead of time, you can know for sure that it's there before you even leave and have one less thing to think about..
I don't know of an airline that didn't charge for excess bags and weight decades ago, so your claim that people did this without being charged is strange. There was usually a weight limit (50lbs), above which you paid. If your airline was not doing this, they deserved to go out of business because everyone I ever flew from the 80s forward did. That is not the issue now. The issue now is charging for a single checked bag (and now a carry-on) which, if it is within a stated range and size, should be part of the cost of the plane ticket.