United Airlines will begin charging $15 for the first checked bag, the latest in a series of add- ons by airlines beleaguered by rising fuel costs.
The Chicago-based carrier follows the lead of American Airlines, which added the fee last month. US Airways also announced a $15 first-bag fee Thursday.
“We expect our fuel bill to go up $2 billion this year,” United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski said, adding that the baggage charge would offset just a small portion of that.
The fee will apply to United passengers who buy a ticket beginning today for travel within the United States and to and from Canada, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands beginning Aug. 18.
The move by United, the largest carrier at Denver International Airport, comes on the heels of its decision to eliminate its no-frills carrier Ted and cut 1,100 jobs and 100 aircraft from its fleet. The airline already charges $25 for a second checked bag.
United estimated the $15 fee will apply to one of every three passengers and projects potential revenue from all baggage fees will be about $275 million a year.
The fee will not apply to customers flying in first or business classes or who have premier status with United or on its Star Alliance airline network. International flights will be exempt as well.
Burt Rosensweig, who arrived in Denver on Wednesday with his wife and daughter from Foster City, Calif., said the new charge won’t change how he packs, but it might if it goes higher.
“As a percentage of the overall cost of flying, $15 is not much — it’s like chicken feed,” Rosen sweig said.
But Debbie Dykstra of Chicago said she’s not happy about it, especially with a United flight to Hawaii planned for the end of the month. Dykstra will barely avoid the fee, though.
Analysts see such fees as a necessary step for airlines’ survival.
Bob McAdoo, an analyst with Avondale Partners LLC, said it is too early to tell whether other airlines will follow suit, though the combination of United and American adds a lot of weight in that direction.
“The kind of things United is doing is exactly what it needs to be doing,” McAdoo said. “Every airline is looking at the list and cutting out what is not making money.”
In addition to the $15 fee, United also increased the cost of checking three or more bags, overweight bags or bags that require “special handling” from $100 to $125 or from $200 to $250.
Alex McCarthy: 303-954-1381 or amccarthy@denverpost.com
Packing on the fees
United Airlines’ new checked-bag fee structure:
First bag: $15
Second bag: $25
Also: $125 or $250 for three or more bags, overweight bags or “special handling”
