Do you love getting onto an airplane? Because, let's be honest, nobody is their best self when trying to muscle an overstuffed rolling bag down a narrow aisle and then up into an overhead bin that's exactly, precisely, slightly too small for it. Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore! Because starting in 2017, United Airlines is taking away your right to put a bag in the overhead altogether.
OK, not exactly. It's a new ticket option that, as United representatives will rush to say, will only apply to customers who purchase a new, bare-bones fare. Check out the fun: It costs less than today's baseline economy, you don't get access to an overhead bin, and you don't get a seat assignment until the day you take off. In a spin worthy of a Heisman trophy, the airline calls this option "Basic Economy." We would also accept "Crap in Your Lap," or "No Feet Under Your Seat."
You're enraged. We get it. So just swear off United, right? Fly American, or Delta, or any other airline instead. (Or cough up the actual money for the amenities you want.) Oh, and avoid Spirit, if you don't already: The budget carrier started charging $30 for overhead space in 2010.
Problem is, now that United has made itself the first major airline to violate the sanctity of the overhead bin, its competitors will probably follow. It's like, once you give up the middle armrest, you're not getting it back. "It is most likely that American and Delta will look at the reaction, and, if it's not too bad, they will do the same," says George Hobica, founder and editor of Airfarewatchdog. "One gets away with something and they all pile on."
It's happened before. In 2008, American Airlines announced it would charge $15 for a traveler's first checked bag. Weeks later, United and US Air (which has since merged with American) mimicked the move. Now, checked bag fees are entrenched—and generated $3.8 billion for American carriers in 2015.
Secretly, this is kinda good news—if you learn the right lesson. Amenity-stuffed flying and low-cost flying can't coexist. Why not give in and pay to check your bag? In exchange for a couple of minutes of waiting and a few bucks, you won't have to haul your bag around for the next few hours. Airlines are better than ever at not losing your stuff, and you won't have to worry about staking your claim in the overhead bin. Download some Netflix and relax. And if you won't change your ways, know that fewer people with access to that space means more room for you.
Because this trend isn't about to reverse. Airlines will get away with as much as possible, and when they see others leading the charge, they have trouble resisting echoing the battle cry.
