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I'm not opposed to unbundling for flight tickets. If you don't have checked luggage or don't need to eat, why pay for it? What riles me up is when airlines int

I'm not opposed to unbundling for flight tickets. If you don't have checked luggage or don't need to eat, why pay for it? What riles me up is when airlines intentionally provide a shitty experience when you're not willing to pay the higher price. To me, as a status flyer this is s form of blackmail and I'm not willing to play. Their error of thinking (looking at you, Lufthansa Group, but others likely pull the exact same shit) is that I don't only buy cheap flights, but will sometimes splurge for a business ticket in long distance. Just this February my business went to the Omanis (which also offer the better product). Being treated like shit on short distance flights was not the only reason, but certainly a factor.

throwaway22032 3y ago
The problem is that eventually it becomes ridiculous to the extent that the process feels, well, just mean. For example, budget flights in Europe have no cabin baggage included other than a very small bag. There's enough space in the cabin, and logically the cost of adding another 10kg to each person can't be more than 10-15% of the ticket, but it's way more than that to add a normal sized bag.
gnicholas 3y ago
Sure, people often travel without checked luggage. But the "basic economy" tier typically also forbids you from bringing a carry-on bag (just one personal item), and you also don't have a reserved seat. How often do people fly with just one personal item? And if you don't have a reserved seat, then you're the first person to be bumped if the flight is overbooked and everyone actually shows up. So while some perks are often optional, most of the unbundling affects core features. And presumably the reason for this is so they can show up as the lowest price, get you halfway through the purchase process, and convince you to upgrade.
xp84 3y ago
> Just this February my business went to... So happy to hear that there was competition for you to do that! The lack of it on so many routes (and the oligopoly that is domestic air travel) is the source of this whole problem. If sufficient competition exists, it puts a limit on the degree they can get away with. Without it, the blueprint is clear: Make them miserable while inventing ways to pay to escape it.
avidiax 3y ago
I'm not saying that you can't have unbundled pricing, or go with an ultra-economy carrier if that product suits you best. I'm saying that listing ultra-economy in the same search results as (now so-called) "premium" economy is a race to the bottom. We can stop this race if we just define a standard bundle and force competition on the basis of the bundle price. If they could charge you extra for the privilege of taking the clothes on your back, they would. I'm surprised they aren't already charging to use seat-back entertainment (or "limited ads" seatback entertainment) or the reading lamp.

throwaway22032 3y ago

The problem is that eventually it becomes ridiculous to the extent that the process feels, well, just mean. For example, budget flights in Europe have no cabin baggage included other than a very small bag. There's enough space in the cabin, and logically the cost of adding another 10kg to each person can't be more than 10-15% of the ticket, but it's way more than that to add a normal sized bag.

gnicholas 3y ago

Sure, people often travel without checked luggage. But the "basic economy" tier typically also forbids you from bringing a carry-on bag (just one personal item), and you also don't have a reserved seat. How often do people fly with just one personal item? And if you don't have a reserved seat, then you're the first person to be bumped if the flight is overbooked and everyone actually shows up. So while some perks are often optional, most of the unbundling affects core features. And presumably the reason for this is so they can show up as the lowest price, get you halfway through the purchase process, and convince you to upgrade.

xp84 3y ago

> Just this February my business went to... So happy to hear that there was competition for you to do that! The lack of it on so many routes (and the oligopoly that is domestic air travel) is the source of this whole problem. If sufficient competition exists, it puts a limit on the degree they can get away with. Without it, the blueprint is clear: Make them miserable while inventing ways to pay to escape it.

avidiax 3y ago

I'm not saying that you can't have unbundled pricing, or go with an ultra-economy carrier if that product suits you best. I'm saying that listing ultra-economy in the same search results as (now so-called) "premium" economy is a race to the bottom. We can stop this race if we just define a standard bundle and force competition on the basis of the bundle price. If they could charge you extra for the privilege of taking the clothes on your back, they would. I'm surprised they aren't already charging to use seat-back entertainment (or "limited ads" seatback entertainment) or the reading lamp.