Spirit Airlines Introduces $45 Carry On Bag Luggage Fee

by underthesea

Spirit Airlines—touted as the low-cost airline carrier based in Florida—is now introducing the largest tacked-on baggage fee of any airline—passengers will pay $45 for each piece of Carry-On luggage or bag traveling in the plane’s overhead storage bin.

The new Spirit fee is unusual--other airlines have added or increased fees over the past two years, to check passenger luggage or bags into the cargo bay. Most airlines have added such fees in the last two years to help make up for declining demand. Basically checked baggage for flying has seen fees on airlines—but carry-on bags have been free—making Spirit Airlines’ move a big one for the airline industry.

Airline watchdog groups question if the move by the “low-cost” Spirit will prompt other or major airlines to incur the same or similar fee for the “service”—adding yet another structure in the fee schedule to which the airline industry has already resorted.

Airlines as a whole have been “under fire” for their more recently-introduced fees that have been charged to flying passengers—those recent baggage and reservation-change fees over the past two years have amounted to about US $2 Billion in revenue for airline industry overall.

"The real question is will other airlines follow [Spirit], and will this [new carry-on baggage fee] actually be good for air travel?" said George Hobica, president of airfarewatchdog.com.

Spirit Airlines currently flies to limited locations including the Caribbean, Bahamas, and Central and Latin America—plus a daily flight from Los Angeles International Airport “(LAX) to Florida. Spirit introduced the new $45 Carry-On Fee concurrently during the airline’s announcement of new “lower” passenger fares and bag fees for its $9 Fare Club members.

Spirit Airlines passenger carry-ons or bags that fit in the overhead bin of the plane will cost flying passengers $45 apiece—with an “incentive” of $30 if the new airline fee is paid online. Spirit’s Fare Club program airline members pay $20 for each carry-on bag. Airline passengers can expect the new Spirit fee to go into effect for plane reservations pertaining to travel with Spirit on or after August 1--booked now.

Spirit us currently not charging for carry-on items that fit under the seat—thereby missing its opportunity to tack on an extra $45.