What’s next for US airlines? Nude travel?

No recent travel issue has raised such an uproar as Spirit Airlines’ proposed new baggage fees with US Senators and high level government officials getting into the act, and even facetious proposals about nude travel.
 

“We already know that Miramar-based Spirit Airlines caters to cheapskates. And we also know that its advertisements and promotions cater to customers who enjoy sexual innuendo. So maybe it’s inevitable that the company would find a lucrative way to merge these two facets of its business,” says a blogger on AOL News who jokingly predicts the airline’s next step will be nude travel.
 

On a more serious note, US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and a US senator are threatening to halt Spirit Airlines’ new proposed charges.
 

LaHood called Spirit Airlines’ decision to start charging passengers for carry-on bags "outrageous" and "ridiculous," adding:
 

"I don’t think they care about their customers."
 

"I think it’s a bit outrageous that an airline is going to charge someone to carry on a bag and put it in the overhead. And I’ve told our people to try and figure out a way to mitigate that," said Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y.
 

"The commercial airlines have reached a new low by attempting to charge passengers for the right to place their luggage in the overhead bins," said Flyers Rights president and founder, Kate Hanni.
 

When TripAdvisor.com did an online poll, they found 91 percent opposed to paying a fee for a carry-on bag.
 

Spirit’s move comes at a time when Ryanair, Europe’s leader in “a la carte” fees, is planning to scale back on toilets and require passengers to pay for the usage.
 

Here in the US, threats by the government to step in to halt fees — even Spirit’s — are raising questions.
 

"This industry is still deregulated," said Terry Trippler, the veteran travel agent and commentator. "Spirit Airlines has the right to run their business the way they see fit. If customers don’t like it, they will fly someone else."
 

In a press release, Spirit Airlines says:
 

“In order to continue reducing fares even further and offering customers the option of paying only for the services they want and use rather than subsidizing the choices of others, [Spirit] is also progressing to the next phase of unbundling with the introduction of a charge to carry on a bag and be boarded first onto the airplane.”
 

Spirit Airline’s Chief Executive Ben Baldanza said the fee was an attempt to eliminate delays, after the airline "identified excessive carry-on baggage as the No. 1 controllable reason that our planes were being delayed at the gate."
 

It’s not about bringing in more money, given that the airline lowered base fares by the
amount of the fee or more, he said. "No one pays more, some pay less, and those with carry-on bags get to board first."
 

Carry-on fees are $20 for members of Spirit’s $9 Fare Club who book online, $30 for other online bookers and $45 at the gate.
 

Although Baldanza says the benefits of the new policy haven’t been properly explained to consumers, he dismisses the idea that nude flying will be next as "a joke and kind of funny."
 

By David Wilkening