Carry-On and Checked Baggage Spirit Air Will Cost You!!!

Hello All BlkAv8tor2003 Checking In!!!

Well the time has come and I have said it since well before the baggage fees went up, that the airlines would ultimately start charging passengers a fee to carry-on baggage! No matter how juicy the details or how many perks you may get by joining different flier clubs with any particular airline, you may end up paying to fly with more than a coat, purse or briefcase.

Does anyone fly like that these days anymore??? The days of hats, coats and purses are going by the wayside. 1960's style of flying is coming back trust me! Remember the saying "History Repeats Itself!" Well history is starting to repeat itself and it's going to cost you! So be prepared as gasoline prices go up this summer, delays will never go away and tensions of people frustrated when they fly are higher than ever!

Here is Spirit Air based out of Miramar, Florida with 40 destinations has started charging for carry-on baggage. They are the first U.S. carrier to institute this policy and it starts in August. The fees are listed in the article below. It can cost you as much as $45 at the airport to carry on a bag.
(Carry-on Baggage: anything that you would have to put into an overhead bin)

Spirit Air is expecting this to make deplaning the aircraft a faster process and boarding to be a breeze too! If you don't know already, it's time to start checking your bag to your destination with FedEx or UPS if your traveling for pleasure. If your traveling for business you may need to carry-on your bags because destinations can change with short notice and getting a bag changed between flights can create potential baggage mishandlings.

So the time to be more prepared is really here. Be ahead of the ballgame and know what fees may pop up on you when you get to the airport!

I'll keep up on this and post any changes or differences that you need to know!!!

"Be Proactive Not Reactive And Enjoy Your Flight!!!"

BlkAv8tor2003

Fees for checked and carry-on baggage: Effective for flights booked today and on for flights after August 1, passengers on Spirit Airlines must also pay to bring on a carry-on above a personal item. This is a completely new fee for them, since carry-ons used to be free.


To take on any bag aside from a personal items like purse or briefcase, you'll be paying $20 online if you're a Spirit club member, $30 online for non-members and $45 at the airport. You will get "priority boarding," however. Along with this new fee, the checked rates have gone up to $15 online for members on domestic/$20 international, $25 online for non-members on domestic/$30 international and $45 for anyone checking their bag at the airport. And that's just the first bag!

Spirit Airlines, this is getting prohibitively complicated! Now for the sale information...
Airfares from 1 penny: Perhaps we should be happy that Spirit isn't having another of their bawdily-named airfare sales, but there is just so much fine print to this one that we're tempted to dismiss it straightaway.

It's for their $9 Fare Club members only, and to join that club you have to lay down $40 annually; never mind that whenever we search for Spirit flights, we never see $9 fares listed for the $9 Club.


So if you're a member of the club, there are currently a million seats on Spirit flights available from only a penny. But that penny can quickly become $72 no matter how hard you try.


For example, a one-way, one person "Penny" fare:
"Penny Plus" sale from Detroit—Las Vegas


Ticket: 1 cent


Carry-on baggage paid at airport: $45


Fuel: $54.22


Taxes & Fees: $18.70


Total: $117.93

Inspections show inaccurate airline luggage scales may cost travelers money

Posted By: PointsWizard Read More in

Hello All, BlkAv8tor2003 Checking In!!!

As we move toward the end of the year and the busiest part of the travel season isn't ironic about the news that starts to come out with all of the airlines financial woes! This is a prime reason for passengers to become more "Proactive" in there travel plans than ever before. Now it's the scales the airlines could be using to nickle and dime you to death for every bit of cash they can get to stay above water another day! As you read the following story you will see what I mean and I also made a personal observation. How is it the cities with the most issues with bag weights are the cities with larger retired citizens in the Florida area (I'm curious to see what other retirement cities are like). One would think over-weight baggage we be most likely associated with the passengers traveling to the Caribbean (non-vacationer) like natives of the islands who tend to travel heavy going to the islands and coming back considerably lighter in baggage weight. Usually when your checking in to a flight and your checking a bag I would ask to see the scale and ask to have it zeroed before you put anything on the scale. If you think your bag will be close and a weight issue might be in the works at least be sure that it's weighing your baggage correctly.

Plan ahead and get to the airport early enough so that if weight is a problem you can adjust the items in your baggage maybe to another bag or carry-on to keep from having to pay an over-weight fee. There are some airports that have the scales accessible to you before you go to check-in and you can weigh it yourself to see were you stand and then adjust accordingly.

Weighing your baggage at home is also a good thing but remember the average basic scale for home use is a good range indicator (unless you have a newer digital scale) for the weight of your bag(s). So get an idea of the weight your working with and adjust as needed or at least make sure your not so heavy that you incur additional cost if your in the neighborhood of 100 lbs.

Packing your bag should be done methodically. Pack your clothing, shoes and personal products while thinking about their weight if your going someplace for a short period of time. Look at the climate of the place your going while packing to gauge what you need to check vs. carry-on. Somethings you can wait to get if your traveling to a friend or family members home you may not need to pick up some things and wait until you arrive to save you some ounces. Remember 16oz equals 1 pound and they add up quickly.

Sending your bag(s) ahead if you know where your going especially for the holidays and your spends several days in a place, think about checking your luggage ahead of time by sending it via UPS or FedEx. It maybe a little more expensive but you at least know where your luggage is all the time, you can send it 2-3 days ahead and have it waiting for you with family or friends when you arrive and your day of travel can be a light in day travel weight and much more comfortable and stress free about where your bag is if there is a delay or cancellation. Carry-on a small bag with food, personal items, medicine and at least a change of underwear and a washcloth just in case you get stuck in an airport and a hotel room isn't a viable option. Remember if you think everything is going to smooth in easy your already setting yourself up for disappointment.

Lastly, it is already snowing in some cities now and the airlines use different average weights to calculate the weight and balance for an airliner. Summer weight for average passengers is about 180 lbs (general average) and 200 lbs for the winter time and the airlines start using those numbers roughly around October and end in April and they can be adjusted because one way or another because of a cities specific climate conditions. Also when you fly into smaller cities that use commuter size aircraft weight becomes more critical and if your traveling to a ski resort plan on delays, cancellations and bags not arriving on-time when you do because of weight limits of that particular aircraft. Places in Colorado, Utah, Nevada, N.E. Corridor and of course Canada to name a few will have ski resorts near the local airport and it doesn't take much to have an airport socked in and flights can't land.

So be mindful, proactive and have your guard up in the winter months because things happen and you or the airline won't be able to control it so make the best of the situation my thinking that things may not go as planned and have a great flight and holiday travel season!

BlkAv8tor2003

03Nov08

“Before packing your suitcase and heading to the airport this holiday season, consider this: The airline’s baggage scale may be the reason you’re paying extra for an overweight bag.
A Sun Sentinel analysis of nearly 2,000 South Florida airport scale inspections found that more than one in four resulted in failures from 2005 to mid-2008, many for technical reasons but some because they couldn’t weigh accurately.
Palm Beach International Airport had the worst record for weight-related failures, 12 percent, while Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International and Miami International had 4 percent.
Inaccurate scales could mean travelers are unnecessarily shelling out money for heavy bags, as some airlines have increased fees for overweight luggage to compensate for extra handling and higher fuel costs.
Airlines said only a very small percentage of customers pay overweight bag fees, which are usually at least $50 each way for bags more than 50 pounds, and charges most commonly occur on international flights. Some consumers have filed complaints with the state in recent months, including Joseph Jablonski, of Flanders, N.J.
The 20-year-old and his mom packed a single bag for their four-day Bahamas cruise in July. It weighed 50 pounds on the bathroom scale at home and the JetBlue scale at the Newark airport. Returning from the cruise, Jablonski said he was surprised when a ticket agent in Fort Lauderdale said his bag was too heavy.
“They were trying to tell us the bag gained 35 pounds in four days,” he said, noting they didn’t buy much on vacation. “

by Jaclyn Giovis and Dana Williams
www.sun-sentinel.com/business/custom/consumer

American to hike fees, cut flights, trim staff

BlkAv8tor2003 Checkin' In!!!

Hello All, you see what's going on? I told you it's going to start happening, airlines are going to charge you for everything under the sun when you fly. Check your bags with FedEx or UPS, it's going to better for you in the long run. Cost is in your favor for the most part, security, and getting your piece delivered where you want. You can even track your piece well before you even depart and if for any reason your piece gets delayed or missed your already on top of it in advance. I would say if your a business traveler use this service with a little caution because of the short on advance notice. If you know far enough ahead you can go with the professional shipping companies if your very sure the travel plans aren't going to change. Business travelers I'm not a business traveler where I had to fill out expense reports but if anyone could give me some in-sight on if you could write this cost off or business expense it and or report a cost savings on paper to your company? Be proactive because the less you have to deal with when it comes to the airlines the better off the trip will be...at least things the airline can control!!!

Have A Good Trip!!!

BlkAv8tor2003

12:36 PM CDT on Wednesday, May 21, 2008

By BRAD HAWKINS / WFAA-TV



Michael Ainsworth / DMNAll luggage will be subject to a surcharge starting next month.


Brad Hawkins reports
05/21/08
STORY: AA adds $25 fee for extra bag
LINK: American Airlines baggage information

FORT WORTH — American Airlines, hit hard by escalating fuel prices, said Wednesday passengers will be hit with fees to check any bag, starting with tickets purchased after June 15.
American and its American Eagle subsidiary will also trim their fleets, cut their flight schedules and lay off workers in the coming months.
Speaking at the annual meeting of AMR Corporation, the parent company of both airlines, chairman, president and CEO Gerard Arpey said travelers would face a $15 charge for the first piece of luggage checked, the first time any major domestic airline has used this method to increase revenue.
Delta doesn't plan to match American's fee for the first checked bag, airline spokeswoman Betsy Talton said.
What's your view?

"These are difficult but necessary steps," Arpey said, noting that rising oil prices have inflated the airline's annual fuel costs by nearly $3 billiion since the start of the year.
American recently instituted a $25 fee for second bags checked after a free first bag. Arpey said other passenger fees will be increased, including surcharges for pets and for unaccompanied minors.
Also on Wednesday, Arpey said AMR planned to cut its domestic capacity by up to 12 percent by retiring 40 to 45 American Airlines jets and 30 to 35 American Eagle aircraft starting in the fourth quarter. Some of the planes will be retired; others will be parked at a desert storage facility.
Arpey said fewer flights will lead to job cuts at both American and American Eagle. The number of workers facing layoffs was not announced.
AMR shares tumbled $1.10, or 13.4 percent, to $7.10 after the announcement which came as its shareholders gathered for their annual meeting.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.