How long will flyers tolerate these fees?

As long as traveleers are willing to fly on cut rate airlines this kind of thing will happen. We have never flown on a low fare airline, and never will.

There's a bit more to this fee than that. That $100 charge is a penalty for last-minute carry-on bags. Book & pay online ahead of time and there's no penalty. If it fits under the seat, no penalty. Buyer Beware. This is an airline that has flights for as little $9. Really? You don't think there's not going to be fees for everything else related to the flight?? Use your head. For any airline, you need to go to the website, check out all the fees, and read the fine print. I used to fly SpiritAir pre-9/11. It was a great deal and a good airline. Myrtle Beach to Atlantic City - $19 one way...and 1.00 for a can of coke. No one could beat that. No other carrier flew the route either. The G-G package. (Golfers and Gamblers)

'No other carrier flew the route either' Piedmont?

Nope Well, Let me clarify that. None that I or my travel buddies ever discovered.

The low-cost airlines only work if you know the rules and follow them carefully. If you don't travel in a way that can take adavantage of what they offer, you're better off sticking with other carriers. I'm not sure if it's unfair for them to operate the way they do. Are they counting on consumers not reading their rules and getting stuck with lots of extra fees? Maybe. I can't disagree with them, however, that it's the consumers responsibility to know, and comply with, the agreement that comes with your ticket.

It's really not a question of fair versus unfair. If one believes it to be unfair or otherwise doesn't like it, he can choose to fly on another carrier. Yes, it's ridiculous, but airlines will continue to add on extra fees until it reaches a point where it impacts their ability to sell tickets. And that's probably not happening anytime real soon. I don't get the comment about this kind of thing happening only on "cut rate" carriers. The majors started the extra fees for crying out loud. It's also interesting to note that Southwest's subsidiary, AirTran, still charges for advance seat assignments and checked bags, even though their mantra is now "no extra fees"...wonder if this will change once they have approval to fly under a single certificate? For the record, I like and fly both of those carriers more than anyone else. Some people hate the idea of all the fees over at Ryanair, but like Spirit, they have a model that works for them. And many travelers have figured out how to make it work for them, too.

Spirit just started flying out of Denver as of yesterday. We frequently fly to Chicago. Our benchmark is $100 each way. For the week end after Memorial Day we score $75 tickets with Frontier. For a month late in June the fares are back to $105 which is standard for a dead week. Last Christmas/New Years period we paid $450. Checked Spirit for the June time period and base ticket was $59 but my the time the extra fees were added in it was at the $100 mark - carry on bag was $20, a seat reservation, a beverage, etc. got it close to the standard fee. This is ala carte pricing. And if you can take advantage of the system it works. Other wise take your business somewhere else. It is called free market or unregulated. Either way it has certain advantages and disadvantages.