http://www.consumertraveler.com/today/airline-security-fees-could-soar-under-obama-budget-plan/ The last honest travel site Sun, 12 Feb 2012 20:20:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://www.consumertraveler.com/today/airline-security-fees-could-soar-under-obama-budget-plan/comment-page-1/#comment-10475 Jonathan Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:18:10 +0000 http://www.tripso.com/?p=10462#comment-10475 P.S. - Why is the ATA up in arms about this? Because the government might skim a bit from the well that their airline members abuse? After all, the security fee doesn't come out of airline pockets. Even if there is a marginal cost to the airline to collect this fee on the behalf of the TSA, this marginal cost doesn't increase when the fee does. Is there more to this story than the passenger-paid fee discussed here and in the linked CNN coverage? P.S. – Why is the ATA up in arms about this? Because the government might skim a bit from the well that their airline members abuse? After all, the security fee doesn’t come out of airline pockets. Even if there is a marginal cost to the airline to collect this fee on the behalf of the TSA, this marginal cost doesn’t increase when the fee does. Is there more to this story than the passenger-paid fee discussed here and in the linked CNN coverage?

]]> http://www.consumertraveler.com/today/airline-security-fees-could-soar-under-obama-budget-plan/comment-page-1/#comment-10474 Jonathan Sun, 01 Mar 2009 11:06:51 +0000 http://www.tripso.com/?p=10462#comment-10474 I am of the opinion that our current airport security scheme is wasteful and ineffective and needs to be rethought. However, putting that aside, if you accept that at least for the near future we'll be stuck with the status quo of security theater, doesn't it make sense that we the traveling public bear the brunt of the cost? After all, if we weren't flying, these security checks wouldn't be needed. Besides, the cost of this security fee is not particularly onerous: a full 50% increase would still be just $3.75 per segment (less than the cost of a drink on board, far less than many of the unbundled extras such as a first checked bag) and would cover more than half of the cost of providing security if the present fee covers 36% of this cost. I am of the opinion that our current airport security scheme is wasteful and ineffective and needs to be rethought. However, putting that aside, if you accept that at least for the near future we’ll be stuck with the status quo of security theater, doesn’t it make sense that we the traveling public bear the brunt of the cost? After all, if we weren’t flying, these security checks wouldn’t be needed. Besides, the cost of this security fee is not particularly onerous: a full 50% increase would still be just $3.75 per segment (less than the cost of a drink on board, far less than many of the unbundled extras such as a first checked bag) and would cover more than half of the cost of providing security if the present fee covers 36% of this cost.

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