March 31, 2006
Passengers flying Delta Airlines are seeing a jump in ticket prices as the struggling carrier said it will now pass on airport fees to each ticketholder. In the past, Delta said it has absorbed the Passenger Facility Charges as much as $18 per round-trip itinerary. The fees are generally used to pay for airport improvements.
The airline explained it had absorbed these fees on connecting flights to remain price competitive with non-stop service or via connecting hubs that do not levy the charges.
As a result of the change, ticket prices will increase between $3.00 and $4.50 each way for certain single connecting Delta itineraries within the 50 states where the fees have previously been absorbed.
"Taxes and fees on airline services are among the highest of any consumer good and we believe there should be transparency for our customers in the costs of their travel," said Gail Grimmett, vice president Revenue Management.
"The changes we are announcing today allow us to more accurately display the full costs of government fees imposed on certain connecting itineraries while at the same time allowing us to collect the appropriate revenues to cover a portion of these costs."
