Instead of retaining a competitive advantage and helping fight the good fight to keep cheap airplane tickets and cheap vacation packages readily available, American Airlines has decided to follow its peers and hike the fees associated with checking bags.
Effective February 1st passengers who purchase tickets will pay $25 for the first checked bag on flights in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. They will charge travelers $35 to check a second bag. The new fees also apply to all checked bags on American Eagle and American connection flights.
Select American passengers, including those who purchase first and business class tickets and members of the armed services, will not be charged to check bags.
This move towards higher baggage fees follows Deltas announcement last week that it was raising the cost of checking bags. United Airlines followed Delta in increasing its baggage fees last Wednesday.
Now the cost of checking bags is the same at Continental, Delta, US Airways, United and American.
According to American Airlines, about 25% of its domestic passengers pay checked baggage fees.