I AM FRED HIATT HEAR ME ROAR!

but it won't be enough to help.  The airlines are bleeding cash at an astounding rate, so they are cutting service all over the place, and laying people off.  Smaller regional airports may find themselves without any commercial service at all.

In the past, I've taken advantage of some excellent cheap fares to Chicago, Denver even L.A. But given the current state of the airways- I have cut back on the optional air travel.

Extra charges for headsets, peanuts, bags, h2o are no big deal..as long as they are not scrimping on maintenance and upkeep !!

Whats sounds worse: you can have your peanuts for $5 or we are not giving any peanuts anymore?

What these airlines are doing is denying people water and peanuts and headphones.

It is framed as a charge because Americans like choice. Denying everyone their free peanuts makes people feel deprived. Refusing to buy the $5 bag makes one feel better, even though the end result is the same: no freaking peanuts for me.

I'd rather have cheaper tickets.  And at least as far as the headphones goes, doesn't almost everyone who flies have portable music?  With their own headphones?

Besides, what are they supposed to do?  Just eliminate half the flights?  You hafta pay for the fuel somehow.

The real problem with these charges is that business travelers are paying out of their pocket.  Regardless of whether my travel is reimbursed by a client or if I deduct it as a business expense, I can only claim the ticket fare.  All these other charges, which can quickly add up to over $100 on a round trip, are unreimbursed.  Add a few bucks to the fare and let working stiffs keep their cash in their wallets!

And, BTW, if you think that they are charging for water and peanuts but not cutting corners on maintenance, then I have some land for sale that I would like to show you at low tide.  Case in point:  take a look at American Airlines' tire well inspection debacle this spring.  They had to redo all those wiring bundle inspections becaused they rushed the job the first time around.  

if it improved service.  But it doesn't and hasn't.

And just personal grievance, US Airways is the worst airline in the world.  They beat Aeroflot only in their safety record.

Oh and people who take carry on luggage also need to mind the size restrictions and not stick their luggage at the front of the plane if they are sitting at the back.

is that we need more and better long-distance rail service.

I have some experience in cost-based pricing, but am unfamiliar with airline pricing.  Here are a few questions.  Costing analysis is much more complicated than this, but this is an illustration.

A 737-800 weighs 90,710 pounds empty.  Is the extra fee justified by a bag that probably weighs in the neighborhood of 10-30 pounds?  Or are the airlines really trying to recover the added labor costs for putting on that one extra bag?  (Assigning costs on a fixed/variable cost basis in situations like this is a costing nightmare.)  

I would speculate that this was seat of the pants pricing -- they figured they might squeeze a little extra revenue from passengers who they hoped would sense there was a certain justice in these fees.

Can't one bring a drink and peanuts on the plane with you?

I am a big fan of rail travel, but long distance rail travel is rather infeasible unless the country were to make a major investment in upgrading rail lines.  It's a nice way to take a vacation, though.

The good news from these high prices is that it IS teaching us to conserve, and with an intelligent president we may finally have a decent national energy policy, with real long term strategies and firm commitments.  

We all can learn.  I no longer make separate trips to buy stuff, but combine my lists and try to make efficient trips.  A lot of business travel is and always has been bs -- businesses are going to have to learn to cut out nonessential trips.

And as they say, shower with a friend.

to recover money any way they can right now.  They are bleeding cash like crazy, and they are doing anything and everything they can to try and fix this.

about the long-term prognosis for air travel here:

http://anz.theoildrum.com/node...

Many of those who believe that oil production will soon peak (if it hasn't already) essentially argue that the air travel industry that we have today is largely doomed.  Mainly because there isn't an alternate source that can provide the massive quantities of fuel that they would need at a price that is cheaper than what they now pay for jet fuel.  Since their business models were built around availability of cheap jet fuel, they really can't tolerate oil above 100$/bbl.