Behind the fee hikes that drove stellar profits for U.S. airlines in 2012

Samantha Shankman

February 1st, 2013 at 4:33 AM EST

Photo Credit: Half of airline fee changes in 2012 related to baggage. Flickr / Marissa Michaella Kelly

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The incremental hikes in 2012 and bundling only serves to confuse consumers and make true price comparison even more difficult to decipher.

Frequent flyers will tell you that airlines are increasing the number and cost of fees on what feels like an everyday basis. Their frustrations were validated when IdeaWorks announced that airlines had received an estimated $36.1 billion in revenue from ancillary services in 2012. This was a whopping 11 percent increase over 2011. Which fee changes led to the 11 percent hike? U.

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