Spirit Airlines Complaint - $45 carry-on Fee boycott - flying Spirit Airlines

Posted by goduke on 2010-04-07:

I heard about that on the radio news this morning. That's a pretty bold move by Spirit. If other airlines follow them, it'll probably stick. If no one else jumps, I'd be amazed if they don't jetison it pretty quickly.

Posted by Ben There on 2010-04-07:

I really hope other airlines do not follow. I will probably be exempt on the airlines I fly the most because of frequent flyer status, but talk about a nightmare for the agents and flight attendants who have to deal with a bunch of mad passengers.

Posted by yoke on 2010-04-07:

I just read the article. I agree with the airline. My thought is there are some that did not want to pay to have their luggage sent through and instead saved money by carrying on. Meanwhile the person next to them who did not carry on the suitcase had to pay to have their luggage on the same flight. It has always been a pet peeve of mine when people would bring on the big carryons and then you have no space to put your small carryon so it is at your feet the entire flight.

Posted by Ben There on 2010-04-07:

I think they should include the price of a carry on in the price of the ticket. As someone who often makes same day trips or overnights, I don't want to pay $90 more on top of my $500 ticket to bring my personal belongings with me. Checking a bag on such a short trip is pointless as I don't want to spend 30 minutes to an hour of my already long day waiting for my overnight bag.

Posted by yoke on 2010-04-07:

If the airlines were smart they would have just added more money for the price of a ticket and not let the public know they were going to nickel and dime you for your luggage.
Ben, I understand what you are saying, but there have been times that the 5 of us have flown and we have had to have our carryons at our feet the entire time because there was no overhead space left because people had luggage stored.

Posted by Sparticus on 2010-04-07:

This is going to be interesting to watch. Pretty steep price if you ask me. $90 round trip for one carry-one is almost as much as some flights cost.

Posted by Marymc on 2010-04-07:

Actually, the airlines want you to put the small carry-on items under the seat in front of you. The bins are for the larger items. They tell you this on every flight.

I have also noted that the airlines are much stricter now about what you carry on and are adhering to the bag size you are allowed to bring on. If anything, I have noticed that most people are bringing less on, at least the flights I fly. I can see why people flying on business for a couple of days would choose to bring their bags on board too. If it's lost for your 2-day business trip, you are literally out-of-luck.

I also think the airline should just add the fee onto the ticket. It's just another way they are trying to gouge the consumer. With all the airline choices, it shouldn't be too hard to find one that will suit your needs without paying the $45 carry-on charge. I'll bet Spirit reconsiders this move very quickly.

Posted by Connoisseur on 2010-04-19:

Airlines have become an obnoxious mass transportation mess. Want to ruin your day? Just use the airlines to get from point A to point B. Want to spend more time than necessary to get to point B, just use the airlines.
The airlines are badly managed, and an inefficient mess. Invest in a heavy duty good vehicle and travel in comfort and make time at your convenience, is the only way to travel in the 21st century.

Posted by Ben There on 2010-04-19:

LOL Connoisseur, if only I could get to LA and back in the same day from Dallas or drive to London that would be ideal.

At least the major airlines have confirmed that they will not be charging for carry ons, so we will see if Spirit sticks to this fee or drops it because of a decline in passengers.

Posted by Connoisseur on 2010-04-27:

Ben There you have my sympathies. You frequent must fly type of people have no way to get around it and must be subjected to the abuse that airlines heap on their customers. I feel your pain. And on top of that you now have to worry which passanger is a spazz job ready to meet 72 virgins. Those days of worry about the safety of the aircraft seems trivial now.

Posted by idontthinkso on 2010-04-27:

You can agree or disagree with the policy at your wallet's discretion. The simple fact is, the airlines want more money. The economic climate means that leisure travel is way down. More people are choosing to stay home or use other methods than flying. There are people who abuse the carry-on policy. There are people who are ABUSED by the carry-on policy.

Something has to give.

The cost of fuel and business makes airlines go out of business. (this is coupled with their own greed, mismanagement and stupidity)

The moment someone invents an alternate fuel-source or invents an engine that doesn't gobble a metric ton of fuel for five feet, we are going to see some drastic changes in the industry.

Right now the only thing to do is be aware and not make everyone around you suffer.

Posted by jerseygurl on 2010-11-25:

maybe we should just start shipping clothes, shoes, etc instead of paying for the cost of checked baggage and carry on bags! it would probably be less $ if you are going to visit family, as opposed to business travelers who are staying in a hotel!

Posted by Wondering on 2012-02-07:

I wonder how many of these comments supporting the fees are by Spirit employees? I am joining the boycott of Spirit, which I have flown for years. We defeated Bank of America and Netflix. Now it's time for Spirit. We the people have the power we need. Let's hit them where it hurts. I even unsubscribed from their email listserv today.