United Says Customers May Dislike Basic Economy But They’re Buying It
Photo Credit: United Airlines CFO Andrew Levy said as many as 40 percent of economy class customers are buying a new no-frills fare. Pictured here are economy seats on a United Express plane. United Airlines
Skift Take
What have we learned from this investor conference? Americans are cheap. Some travelers probably do win when buying these fares, but United says as many as 40 percent of customers are choosing them. Surely, some don't know what they're buying.
On social media and elsewhere, travelers often complain about new Basic Economy fares from United Airlines. How can airlines, they ask, sell fares that don't allow passengers to bring large carry-on bags for overhead bins?
United has only sold Basic Economy fares on most domestic routes for a couple of months, but early returns show passengers are buying them, the airline's CFO said this week.
Given the choice to save — often about $15 to $20 per one-way ticket over the next-lowest economy fare — about 30 to 40 percent of economy class customers have been choosing no-frills Basic Economy fares, CFO Andrew Levy said Tuesday at the Citi 2017 Industrials Conferenc
