Thu, Sep 15, 2011
DOT Would Require Info To Assess Effects Of A La Carte
Fees
The breaking off of formerly bundled services into a la carte
fees by airlines has had a couple of significant side effects
besides increasing costs for travelers. The unbundled revenue
allows airlines to pay less in federal taxes, and it distorts
traditional statistics for problems such as lost or mishandled
bags. ACI-NA, Airports Council International-North America, is
applauding efforts by the US Department of Transportation to gather
additional data that will restore the integrity of the denominator
in these equations.
ACI-NA has submitted comments in response to DOT's Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking regarding "Reporting Ancillary Airline
Passenger Revenues." ACI-NA applauds the DOT for its proposal to
create a stand-alone reporting form to accurately capture airline
ancillary revenues not included in the standard ticket fare, which
now comprise about 6.5 percent of airline revenue.
"ACI-NA remains concerned about the effect this may have on the
Airport and Airway Trust Fund," said ACI-NA President Greg
Principato. "By requiring airlines to report additional categories
of fee revenue to the Department’s Bureau of Transportation
Statistics we believe the proposed NPRM would supply the (FAA and
GAO) with crucial data needed to assess the impact of unbundled
fares and the increasing use of ancillary fees on the viability of
the Airport and Airways Trust Fund."
Regarding the significance to measures of performance,
Principato adds, "While the airlines already report the number of
mishandled bags relative to the number of passengers flown, more
passengers are choosing not to check bags to avoid fees, decreasing
the number of checked bags overall. Reporting all checked bags
would be a more useful comparison...allowing air travelers to
compare the number of lost or damaged bags relative to the number
of bags handled by the airlines."
ACI-NA represents local, regional and state governing bodies
that own and operate commercial airports in the US and Canada.
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