Delta, American, United add charges

Delta and United put fees of as much as US$30 each way to flights on as many as 41 days from now to May 28, said Tom Parsons, chief executive officer of researcher Bestfares.com. All three airlines added US$50 one-way charges on some flights on Feb. 8, the day after the National Football League's Super Bowl.

The 2010 fees build on surcharges that will take effect on flights after the U.S. Thanksgiving and New Year's holidays. Targeting seasonal flying, not just busy travel days related to events, is a new step for U.S. carriers trying to raise revenue amid the recession.

“This is becoming kind of a grab” for passengers' cash, said Robert W. Mann, president of consultant R.W. Mann & Co. in Port Washington, New York. “Nickel and diming in the form of US$5 and US$10 bills is really where it's going.”

US Airways Group Inc., the sixth-largest carrier by passenger traffic, added a 5 percent surcharge to tickets for travel from May 8 through September to help offset possible increases in fuel or other costs, said Valerie Wunder, a spokeswoman.

The seasonal charges were first imposed in September for weekend flights after Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, and spread among the so-called full-fare carriers — Delta, American, United, US Airways and Continental Airlines Inc.

Delta and United have now boosted surcharges for some of the Thanksgiving and New Year's flights to as much as US$30 one way, Bestfares.com's Parsons said. That's the second increase in the fees, which began at US$10.

Spokesmen for Delta, American and UAL Corp.'s United confirmed the surcharge changes. Atlanta-based Delta is the world's biggest carrier, based on passenger traffic. American is second and Chicago-based United is No. 3 in the U.S.

Surcharges of US$10 each way have been added to dates in March and April, to capture traffic around spring break and Easter holidays.

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