Struggling airlines launch more 'a la carte' fees at fliers

ByABC News
June 22, 2009, 1:36 AM

— -- Figuring out the cost of his parents' recent trip between Dallas and southern California was "a nightmare" for frequent flier Thomas McDonnell.

Comparing airline baggage fees and other extra charges was so difficult that McDonnell had trouble determining the most economical flight. "It was so complicated that driving became a strong option," says McDonnell, of Austin.

McDonnell's frustration is shared by many fliers who are confronted with an ever-expanding array of fees for services that once were included in the price of an airline ticket. They complain the charges aren't transparent, are misleading and even a rip-off so much so that William Maloney, president of the American Society of Travel Agents, says Congress may need to force greater disclosure.

"There's an increasing feeling among consumers that they're being taken advantage of," Maloney says. "Consumers have more rights when they buy a hammer at a hardware store than when they buy a $1,000 airline ticket."

The airlines justify fees as letting customers choose the level of service they're willing to pay for and say passengers are getting used to them. And ultimately, as aviation consultant Michael Boyd says, "It's business, and they (airlines) have the right to charge for whatever they want."

Sorting out the airlines' fees can be a time-consuming task.

It took a week for a USA TODAY reporter who, unlike most consumers, was assisted by airline public relations staff to compile 28 different types of fees charged by 14 major airlines.

Even professional travel agents such as Maloney's members and big companies with travel departments have trouble sorting through them.

"Budgeting travel costs becomes difficult without knowing the full price employees will spend on air travel," says Kevin Maguire, president and CEO of the National Business Travel Association, which represents more than 4,000 travel managers and suppliers.