Delta Air Lines and Continental Airlines both raised their fees for first and second checked bags to $25 and $35, respectively, while offering discounts of a sort to travelers who check in online.
Other airlines may soon be matching or raising fees.
With all of the inconvenience that travelers went through post-Christmas after the Northwest Airlines terrorism incident, the bag fee hikes add insult to injury, so to speak. And, that's especially true since there have been restrictions on, and more inspections of, carry-on luggage.
What a simple experience it is to fly these days.
Just take a look at a portion of Continental's bag-fee grid, which follows:
This is how major airlines add value to the travel experience during these already-stressful times.
There has been speculation that Southwest Airlines may abandon ship and begin charging for first-checked bags.
I don't believe that JetBlue -- another holdout -- will be far behind.
After all, JetBlue is transitioning to a new reservations platform with all kinds of opportunities for new ancillary revenue -- including, possibly, checked-bag fees.