Brace yourself. Soon they’ll be charging you to sit by the window:
This summer, be sure to pack some extra cash in your carry-on. More airlines are starting to charge for services that used to be free on many carriers.
Skybus Airlines, a new carrier based in Columbus, Ohio, that plans to take to the skies this Tuesday, promises low fares but will charge extra for everything from soft drinks ($2) to bag checking ($5 apiece for the first two bags) to early boarding privileges ($10 a person, except for those with disabilities).
Next month, Spirit Airlines, based in Fort Lauderdale, will begin charging for bag checking and onboard beverages, which had been free. It’s also moving to a single-class cabin but renaming its business class Big Front Seat and charging a premium for the larger seats.
Meanwhile, nearly every major carrier has done away with free onboard meals in coach on domestic flights, and has instead begun to charge for individual food and drink items, often at hotel minibar prices. Earlier this year, American Airlines, for example, replaced its $4 snack boxes offered on domestic flights of three hours or longer with offerings like Lay’s Stax Potato Crisps ($3), M&Ms ($3) and bottled water ($2) and now sells them on domestic flights of two hours or longer. On longer flights within the United States, American offers $5 light meals like breakfast bagel sandwiches, Italian wraps or Asian chicken salads.
Heaven help if you need to buzz the flight attendant for one of those ratty ass blankets.
New York Times.com: From HBO to Chips, Airlines Go à la Carte
The Lo Zone 
>This is exactly why startups like JetBlue skyrocketed in popularity – they took care of their customers for free. I thought when people were blaming JetBlue for the blizzard stranded passengers, they were taking a bad rap. But there will be smaller airlines willing to pay a bit extra to sway passengers over to their services. Of course, with fuel costs going through the roof, who knows where air travel is headed, price wise.
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>travel is going to skyrocket in prices. as expensive as it is to get regular gas…airplane fuel costs dwarf that price.Either be prepared for the hike or enjoy 1-2 tank trips for vacations. It's going to get much higher before the costs come back down.I hope I'm wrong and the end is soon, but it seems like the powers-that-be controlling the flux of crude and other necessities are playing hardball and the people that are the consumers get the staff while they play on power struggles.
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>Guess we got to go back to the dayz when gramma packed us that chicken box! LOL! Gramma ALWAYS knew how to handle adversity!
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>it's going to be interesting to see how are they going to police these policies. now there are many food vendors on the gate/concourse levels before boarding the plane. are they not going to allow you to bring outside food on the plane?are they gonna bag search you for food/drink?if everything stays "as is", what you would pay for food inside the airport would balance out if bought it on the plane. so i see it as a trade off. i guess the airlines are saying "hey, why should we give you this for free, when you'll pay top dollar inside the airport?" if you traveled on jetblue from jfk, it's looks like a mall food court in the boarding area. can't help but to buy something or stay hungry.
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>@Cap: LOL. I remember going down South on the Greyhound. My grandma packed a big ol brown bag of fried chicken, candy, bread, and other snacks. It lasted for the 26 hour ride. Whew! That's why I hate long road trips. LOL. And great-grandma would pack Fresh fried chicken (she had a farm) and other stuff in a big brown bag for the trip home. LOL. Ah that was so long ago. Damn, we cannot bring liquids over 3 oz on board planes, we get stripped search practically and then gotta pay for all that ish. SMH. What's next us flying half naked?
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>DAM if greyhound gets sexy to me…I will hitch hike first! Get your Cd's & a bag of chik'en for the raod trip… The more things change the more they stay the same!L.boogie
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>L. Boogie!!! Welcome back!!! We missed you, girl!!!
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