How ironic is this movie poster given the last 8 years? But that's a question for a different post. What I'm wondering here is how it is that the airlines work together against us and not compete with one another? Here is the history of the past 7 months. When will this end? When will WE THE PEOPLE rise up again and stand and work as one to make things right again? My heart goes out to those of you who travel the skies on a normal basis. And this does not even touch upon the fees put in for baggage.
Listed below are the 19 attempts at airfare hikes and fuel surcharge increases that have taken place in the past five months. Fourteen of these attempts were successful:
(1) Week of December 20, 2007: Major airlines raise fuel surcharges on leisure and Business Class fares from $10 roundtrip to $20 roundtrip. Total increase since December 18, 2007, $10 roundtrip.
(2) Week of January 7, 2008: Major airlines raise leisure and Business Class airfares by $10 roundtrip. Fuel surcharges still remain at $20 roundtrip. Total increase since December 18, 2007, $20 roundtrip.
(3) Weekend of January 11, 2008: United Airlines attempts to raise domestic airfares by adding a $30 roundtrip fuel surcharge to domestic airline tickets. Delta, American, Continental, US Airways and Northwest Airlines match. However, on January 14, 2008, Northwest rolled back their $30 fuel surcharge hike forcing the other major airlines, including United, to roll back their fuel surcharge increase. In other words, this attempt to raise airfares (by adding a $30 fuel surcharge) was a bust.
(4) Weekend of January 17, 2008: American Airlines attempts to raise domestic airfares by adding a $20 roundtrip fuel surcharge. Delta, United and Continental quickly match. Northwest Airlines and US Airways decline to match, forcing the other carriers to roll back their fuel surcharge. This attempted airfare fuel surcharge hike is a bust.
(5) Weekend of January 24, 2008: Major airlines double fuel surcharges on leisure and Business Class airfares from $20 to $40 roundtrip. Total increase since December 18, 2007, $40 roundtrip.
(6) Weekend of February 22, 2008: Major airlines raise airfares on both leisure and Business Class airfares $10 roundtrip. $40 fuel surcharge still in place. Total increase since December 18, 2007, $50 roundtrip.
(7) Weekend of February 29, 2008: Major airlines raise leisure and Business Class airfares $10 roundtrip. Total increase since December 18, 2007, $60 roundtrip.
(8) Weekend of March 7, 2008: Major airlines raise fuel surcharges from $40 to $50 roundtrip. Total airfare increase with airfare hikes and fuel surcharges since December 18, 2007, $70 roundtrip.
(9) March 14, 2008: United & Continental Airlines raised both leisure and business domestic airfares by $10 roundtrip on flights up to 500 air miles, $20 on flights 501 to 1000 air miles, $30 on flights 1001 to 1500 air miles, and a whopping $50 roundtrip on domestic flights over 1,500 air miles one-way. On March 15, 2008 American Airlines, Delta Airlines and US Airways matched the new fare hike. March 16, 2008 Northwest, the final hold out of the legacy airlines, matched United Airlines airfare increases. Total increase now as much as $120 roundtrip.
(10) Weekend of March 21, 2008: Delta Airlines raises fuel surcharges by $10 roundtrip. United Airlines was the only major airline to match the new increase. Delta Airlines and United Airlines were both forced to roll back the fuel surcharge increase. This attempted airfare fuel surcharge increase is a bust.
(11) March 27, 2008: Delta airlines raises domestic leisure airfares by adding a $10 fuel surcharge to most domestic airfares. This increase is also a bust when other carriers fail to match.
(12) April 10, 2008: United Airlines raises domestic airfares $10 - $30 in markets where they are not competing with low-cost carriers. All of the legacy carriers match and this one sticks. Total airfare increase now as much as $150.
(13) April 16, 2008: United Airlines raises domestic fuel surcharges by $10 to $20 roundtrip. At 8:00 a.m. CDT on Thursday, April 17, Continental and Delta Airlines match. American Airlines matched two hours after Continental and Delta, followed by Northwest Airlines later that day, and finally US Airways goes along that evening.
(14) April 24, 2008: United Airlines raises domestic airfares on most routes by three to five percent. American, Delta and Continental match the increase early the next day; Northwest and US Airways match another 24 hours later.
(15) April 29, 2008: Delta Air Lines raises domestic fuel surcharges by $40 roundtrip. American and United Airlines quickly matched the increase. Continental matched a day later. Northwest and US Airways match another 24 hours later.
(16) May 8, 2008: Delta Air Lines raises domestic fuel surcharges on both short-haul and long-haul flights by $20 roundtrip. American and United Airlines quickly match the increase. Continental, Northwest and US Airways match the increase the following day.
(17) May 23, 2008: United Airlines raises domestic airfares $20 - $60 roundtrip in markets where they are not competing with low-cost carriers. American and Delta quickly match the increase. Continental and US Airways match the increase the following day and Northwest Airlines matching on Sunday May 25, 2008.
(18) June 6, 2008: American Airlines raises domestic airfares $20 roundtrip in markets where they are not competing with low-cost carriers. Continental, Delta, US Airways and United match the increase the next day. All five airlines rollback the increase when Northwest refuses to match. This attempted airfare increase is a bust.
(19) June 11, 2008: American Airlines raises domestic fuel surcharges by $20 roundtrip in markets where they are not competing with low-cost carriers. Continental and United quickly match the increase. Delta, US Airways and Northwest match the next day.
11 comments:
Papa Frank,
Do you like movies about Gladiators?
Yup.
I rarely fly any airline other than Southwest. And when I do, I realize how HORRIBLE the others are. I especially despise American and Delta.
And charging for luggage? Criminal.
I'm thinking, who saved the airlines after 9/11?
We actually took a trip to NYC / CT eight months after the murders of 9/11, and it was a bit scary for me to fly...pregnant. Oh well.
And how do the airlines repay the American public?
sheesh...driving, flying..guess I'll stick to walking!lol
Angel-A bicycle is good too!
PF-Follow the money, or as the Romans always asked about criminal behavior, "To whom the good?"
Who is/are the major stockholder/s in each of the airlines? Are they the same?
Or related, even in a convoluted manner?
And even if the "apparent" stockholders are different, who is behind them?
Start with the m.e., then look at Europe.
Good morning, G*D bless and Maranatha!
tmw
i have a plan.
layer and put on ALL the clothing you'll need for your week away and fedex your other things a couple of days ahead of time. oh nevermind - they're going to start charging for overweight people too, aren't they?
okay, so we need a plan b.......
Plan B -- hold our corrupt politicians liable for the abuses they have put us through by running ALL of their campaigns and a great deal of their socialist programs on oil money and taxes from fuel. Any time they miss a vote deduct it from their pay and double the fee with each subsequent vote missed. Once they miss 10 votes they are automatically dismissed from office. Any spending tacked on to legislation should not only be refused but should incur a penalty from the state it came from. Then that state can hold their own official liable with their votes. Once responsibility is re-established I have a feeling that we will have a REAL CHANGE and not the fairy tale change that Nobama promises.
You think Americans are going to fight THIS when they're not even fighting islamists hard enough?
GOOD LUCK, POPS!!! :-( (informative post..thanks..grrr)
Gone are the industry-building days of free and cheap travel. Soon, only the very elite will be able to go anywhere, whether by plane or long car trips.
That is, if we don't put a stop to this damn energy nonsense.
the reason southwest is able to keep its fairs down is that it negotiated a fuel deal 10 years ago whereby they are paying $50 a barrel for gasoline
so the rising prices in fuel didn't affect Southwest
my son in law works for an airline, one of the few that's still posting a profit....every little bit of weight adds to fuel costs
it sucks but there it is
I still think a lot about Z's earlier post about the story from the future. Jeez, imagine American and all the other major airlines going kaflunk and the last remaining airline is Southwest. There would be families taking different flights instead of being totally separated on one single plane.
One amazing story about airline flight fees is our own. We're booked for a cruise next year out of Italy. The flights pp round trip airfare is $1523. I went to compare them and now they're up as far as just over two grand per ticket.
I think that the airlines are going to kill themselves out due to the way they treat people.
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