Spirit Airlines to Charge New Fee for Carry-On Luggage

April 6, 2010— -- Spirit Airlines today announced that it would start charging passengers for carry-on luggage, the first airline to impose such a fee on the flying public.

On all Spirit flights starting Aug. 1, any carry-on item placed in an overhead bin will cost passengers $30. Members of the airline's "fare club," who pay $39.95 a year for discounts, will pay $20.

Passengers who don't pay the $30 fee in advance -- either online or at the ticket counter -- will get whacked with a $45 fee at the gate just for bringing their carry-on bag on the plane.

Spirit and most other major airlines already charge passengers for each checked bag, but this new surcharge is the latest -- and the most radical -- example of airlines charging passengers extra money by "unbundling" fees that were previously included in the price of a ticket.

"This seems a step too far, but I would have said that about a lot of the unbundling behavior that has gone on," said Robert Mann, an airline industry analyst and consultant based in Port Washington, N.Y.

Spirit will still allow passengers to bring onboard smaller "personal items" such as purses, briefcases, backpacks or laptops that fit under the seats for free.

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The new $30 carry-on fee is actually more expensive than Spirit's $25 fee for checked luggage, signaling that the airline is trying to get as many bags out of the cabin as possible.

Since airlines started charging for checked bags two to three years ago, passengers have tried to cram more and more bags into the cabin to avoid the fees.

There is now often a mad dash to be the first on a plane. Overhead bins fill up before all of the passengers have boarded, and the remaining bags must be checked at the gate. That delays flights and costs the airlines money. Flight attendants have also reported cuts, bruises, sprains and strains as a result of dealing with all the additional items in the overhead bins.

"It's a bold move, certainly," said Travelocity Senior Editor Genevieve Shaw Brown. "It's hard to say whether or not any of the big carriers will follow, but it is certain that they are going to be watching this really closely to see what if any kind of success it has."

"This will reduce the number of carry-on bags, which will improve in-flight safety and efficiency by speeding up the boarding and deplaning process, all of which ultimately improve the overall customer experience," Spirit's chief operating officer Ken McKenzie said in a statement. "Bring less; pay less. It's simple."