American Airlines is introducing a new fee.  This time, a fee from $19 to $39 can you get you a seat up front in coach including bulkhead seats and it will allow you “group 1” boarding. 

Personally, I’m all for offering more varied product on aircraft.  That’s the one development among “debundling” that I am in favor of.  However, please offer me something of real value.  Frontier gets it.  United gets it.  Airtran gets it.  Even Southwest Airlines gets it. 

AA doesn’t get it.  A seat that has no more pitch or other benefits except that it is “up front” and I can potentially board earlier (and sit in an uncomfortable seat longer before take-off) isn’t more value.  If the seat comfort isn’t going to change, do I really care if it’s up front or in the back?  Well, maybe I do if I’m on a cranky old MD-80.  Does it afford me more opportunity for overhead space?  No, not really.  Despite reports to the contrary, it’s just not that hard to find overhead space.  Sure, the bins are more crowded but you can still access them. 

If anything, it’s the jokers who put their luggage up front and then take their seat in back that annoy me.

But I’ll gladly pay for more seat pitch and a generally more comfortable seat.  I’d gladly pay $20 / segment to gain 2 more inches of pitch alone.  And I can already get that on an airline of my choice in most cases.  For the prices AA is offering for this “service” you can more often than not get an Airtran business class upgrade.  You can get more seat pitch and more service on Frontier.  You can get more seat space on jetBlue.  Southwest Airlines’ fee for priority boarding affords me a real opportunity to choose one of the best seats in a 737 for a cheaper price and you can bet I’ll have bin space on the SWA flight no matter what since they aren’t fools and charge exorbitant fees for baggage checking.

Perhaps this might have some appeal to a business traveler but I don’t think such a fee is going to be reimbursed as an expense.  That certainly wouldn’t fly at my company, a major aerospace and defense firm. 

How about a $25 fee that A) gets you a exit aisle seat and B) *guarantees* your checked luggage arrives with you?  That might be particularly attractive to AA flyers.

At the end of the day, for any traveler except the most extravagant, it’s money that can be better spent elsewhere.  And if you are that extravagant, you’re probably getting an upgrade to first class anyway.

Filed under: Airline Fees, Airline News, Airline Seating by ajax