Will Waive Fees For Third Piece Of Checked Luggage
What
a difference a couple days -- and highly-focused public outrage --
can make. On Thursday, American Airlines bowed to recent outcry
surrounding the Fort Worth-based airline's practice of charging
active military personnel a fee to check their baggage when
shipping out.
As ANN reported, the Veterans of Foreign Wars
-- and practically everyone else -- slammed American this week,
after news surfaced two soldiers shipping out from Texas were
charged $400 between them to check their duffel bags. American
spokesman Tim Wagner's explanation -- "Because the soldiers don't
pay a dime, our waiver of the fees amounts to a discount to the
military, not a discount to soldiers" -- fell flat.
American says it will now waive fees for a third checked bag for
active service members. Fees for first and second checked bags have
always been waived, according to the airline.
"The previous policy allowed active military personnel,
traveling on duty, to travel with up to 190 pounds of luggage at no
charge, including a 100 pound checked bag, a 50 pound checked bag,
and a 40 pound carry-on bag," the airline tersely noted. "Only one
other airline waives first and second bag fees for off-duty, active
service members, and no airline allows as much free baggage by
weight as American Airlines."
The new waiver policy for military personnel begins
immediately... and American says in the future it will work closely
with the Department of Defense on similar issues, presumably to
keep its corporate brand out of the public's bullseye.
"We always understood that soldiers traveling on duty were
reimbursed by the military for the fees on required excess baggage.
However, after recently hearing of the burden the military
reimbursement process put on soldiers traveling to war zones, the
choice for us to forgo payment for a third checked bag from the
Department of Defense was clear," said Tom Del Valle, American's
Senior Vice President -- Airport Services.
"We appreciate and marvel at the bravery and sacrifice our
military personnel exhibit daily," Del Valle added. "Anything we
can do to support them and honor them is a top priority for
American Airlines."
Incidentally, its release announcing the change, American
billed itself as "the leading airline in supporting active service
members..." without a trace of irony.