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  • AA to start charging for Blankets/Pillows

    American Airlines to charge $8 for blanket, pillow

    07:33 AM CST on Tuesday, February 9, 2010


    By TERRY MAXON / The Dallas Morning News
    [email protected]



    The blanket and pillow are going the way of the in-flight meal on American Airlines Inc. – if you want one, you'll have to pay for it.

    The Fort Worth-based carrier said Monday that it will take the free red blankets out of its coach section on all North American flights as of May 1. On flights of more than two hours, passengers in coach can buy a blanket and pillow for $8.

    "We evaluate all aspects of our business, and we have to make sure that decisions like this are prudent and strategic for the long-term success of our company," American spokeswoman Andrea Huguely said Monday. "As a result, we're removing the blankets and pillows from selected flights."
    The new policy applies to coach passengers on flights to the United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America, she said. The airline will still provide pillows and blankets at no extra cost in first class and business class and to all passengers to other international destinations.

    The $8 will buy a passenger a blue fleece blanket, an inflatable neck pillow and a coupon good for $10 off a Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. purchase of at least $30, all contained in a clear, zippered pouch, Huguely said.
    American isn't the first U.S. carrier to charge for bedding. JetBlue Airways Corp. and US Airways Inc. already offer $7 kits to passengers who want a blanket and pillow.

    In August 2008, JetBlue began selling "The World's Cleanest travel pillow and blanket kit," which included a $5 coupon for Bed Bath & Beyond purchases.

    Last February, US Airways introduced its "Power-Nap Sack," which includes "a cozy 34- x 60-inch fleece blanket, a soft-to-the-touch inflatable neck pillow, eye shades and foam ear plugs neatly packaged inside a reusable, navy blue fleece drawstring bag embroidered with the US Airways logo," plus a $10 coupon for SkyMall purchases.

    On Southwest Airlines Co., you can't get a blanket at any price. The Dallas-based carrier pulled its blankets off its flights last year, citing health concerns during the H1N1 flu outbreak.

    "We have not returned them to the cabin," Southwest spokeswoman Beth Harbin said Monday. "Of any comments on the subject (very few), we mostly hear that customers appreciate the extra bin space."




    My overall opinion......

    I love the statement made my AA's spokeswoman......"We evaluate all aspects of our business, and we have to make sure that decisions like this are prudent and strategic for the long-term success of our company," In english, "we're poor and we need money".

    I expect UA/DL/CO to follow up eventually.
    what ever happens......happens

  • #2
    American carriers keep cutting complimentary amenities and posting big losses. Something is wrong in this business model.
    TAP - Transportes Aéreos Portugueses

    Voe mais alto. Fly higher.

    www.flytap.com

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    • #3
      Baggage fees (and their rapid escalation) bug me, and I say go Southwest.

      On the other hand- all the airlines are doing it- and the truth (like it or not) is that the business model IS working. (I don't like it, but I've changed my tune that they will be a fact of life since the majority of airlines have them and have also had huge price increases).

      Now, concerning blankets and pillows 1) I don't really care- I have only rarely used them, 2) I would think that it's a significant expense to stock them and keep them sanitary.

      So, I don't see how this is a huge new INCOME source. But do see how it would be a big SAVINGS.
      Les rčgles de l'aviation de base découragent de longues périodes de dur tirer vers le haut.

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      • #4
        Doesn't Southwest cherry pick routes? So "Go Southwest" is often not a real option is it?

        I wish they'd just go back to bundling. In fact, the phone company bundles, the cable company bundles, car dealers bundle. How come airlines don't provide bundles with a discount for buying a bundle? If so many businesses do it, doesn't that mean it is a profitable thing to do?

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        • #5
          Gotta say i find this amusing all these legacy carriers charging for things like this when theres so many so called low cost carriers starting to included things like baggage and pillows and blankets as standard. Iceland Express come to mind, offered both these free and inflight entertainment allbeit on a crt screen above the isle!
          Maybe its time the governments let true econmics kick in and let all the dinosaurs go bankrupt and make way for airline that seem to know a thing about proper financial management.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by davies2911 View Post
            Maybe its time the governments let true econmics kick in and let all the dinosaurs go bankrupt and make way for airline that seem to know a thing about proper financial management.
            Yeah, great, and then who is supposed to serve the small EAS markets? Southwest with their 737s? Yeah right. Who's going to fly longhaul routes to places like Tokyo? Air Tran with their 717s? Yeah right.

            Sure, let all the big carrier die and let carriers like Southwest or Air Tran expand their route networks to fill all the gaps, and soon all the LCCs will be faced with rising costs due to more diverse fleets, more bureaucracy, more employee/union demands. And then 5 years afterwards all the beloved LCCs will be in the same damn spot the current Legacy carriers are in now, and new generation of LCCs will arrive that will then kill the "old dinosaurs" Southwest and Air Tran, with the exact same tiring arguments that you hear being said about AA, DL and the like these days, and the circle will begin anew.

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            • #7
              It seems to me that Airlines are going to nickle and Dime themselves out of customers.

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              • #8
                Doesn't bother me. I take my own inflatable neck pillow and can always put a coat on if I want to get warmer....

                .....and I FLATLY REFUSE to fly AA anyway !
                If it 'ain't broken........ Don't try to mend it !

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                • #9
                  Southwest and the myth

                  SWA is soooooooooo far from being an LCC and has been that far for YEARS. I fly from the Miami area to NY at least 10 times per year. I am loyal to AA but often check competitors' prices to see how much my loyalty is costing me. I have NEVER once seen SWA with cheaper flights, unless of course you book 6 months in advance, which business travelers and in fact most leisure travelers rarely do.

                  so please, let's call a spade a spade, and leave SWA out of the LCC category. who cares that they let bags fly for free? (if you really believe that!)

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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by TeeVee View Post
                    SWA is soooooooooo far from being an LCC and has been that far for YEARS. I fly from the Miami area to NY at least 10 times per year. I am loyal to AA but often check competitors' prices to see how much my loyalty is costing me. I have NEVER once seen SWA with cheaper flights, unless of course you book 6 months in advance, which business travelers and in fact most leisure travelers rarely do.

                    so please, let's call a spade a spade, and leave SWA out of the LCC category. who cares that they let bags fly for free? (if you really believe that!)
                    As I said, if SWA doesn't fly the route you want, the real LCC is the one who does at the least fare. Isn't hard to be low cost by selling only what is profitable. The whole retail discounting industry has done that for years. Sure you can get some things cheaper, but they also carry what is good for them, and you have to change your tastes to suit their plans for max profit. They drove stores like Ben Franklin and Woolworth out of business, stores that cared about selling a variety of things because customers wanted them. We've all been hypnotized by discounting till we have way fewer choices than 20-30 years ago.

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