Senate report slams airlines for raking in billions in seat fees

A Senate subcommittee connected Tuesday slammed U.S. airlines ample and tiny implicit fees to pick seats connected flights.

Between 2018 and 2023 American, Delta, United, Spirit and Frontier brought successful $12.4 cardinal successful seating fees, including for seats with other legroom arsenic good arsenic those successful "preferred" locations that are person to the beforehand of the plane, oregon model oregon aisle seats, said the study from the Senate Permanent Subcommittee connected Investigations.

Last year, United's gross from seating fees totaled $1.3 billion, the archetypal clip since astatine slightest 2018 that class surpassed checked bag-fee revenue, the study said.

While astir large U.S. airlines person gotten escaped of ticket alteration fees for modular system tickets, they person added fees to prime much fashionable oregon roomier seats connected board. Carriers person besides been racing to adhd much premium seats connected committee to summation revenue.

Stamping retired alleged junk fees has been a precedence for the Biden administration. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., the subcommittee's chair, said hose executives person been called to attest astir the signifier astatine a Dec. 4 proceeding called "The Sky's the Limit—New Revelations About Airline Fees."

Airlines for America, a commercialized radical that represents the largest U.S. carriers, said aerial question has go much affordable and that customers tin take what they privation to wage for onboard.

"The study demonstrates a wide nonaccomplishment by the subcommittee to recognize the worth the highly competitory U.S. hose manufacture brings to customers and employees. Rather, the study serves arsenic conscionable different vacation question talking point," the radical said.

The study besides criticized fund airlines Spirit and Frontier, saying they paid gross agents $26 cardinal betwixt 2022 and 2023 to "catch passengers allegedly not pursuing hose container policies, often forcing those passengers to wage a container interest oregon miss their flight."

Spirit said successful a connection that it is "transparent astir our products and pricing, our airdrome policies guarantee Guests are treated reasonably and equally, and we comply with each taxation laws and regulations."

Frontier said that the commissions for gross agents are "simply designed to incentivize our squad members to guarantee compliance with container size requirements truthful that each customers are treated arsenic and fairly, including the bulk who comply with the rules."