I agree with others, this ‘stripped down’ service will likely end up costing as much as current discount fares, so you will pay the same amount for less services. Among other things, they could very easily cram more seats into the ‘discount’ section, by using seats that are narrower and less bulky then current ones,less leg room, etc. Basically, it is like NJ where self service gas stations are illegal, people argue that if we allowed self service, that it would bring down the price of gas, but more than likely what would happen is they would raise the price of full serve while keeping the current price for self serve.
NJ gasoline is low priced because it has low taxes on gasoline (as of 1/2016, NJ taxed gasoline 14.50¢ per gallon, compared to PA at 50.40¢ and NY at 42.64¢ per gallon). I.e. it is not because of the absence of self-service.
On Nov1 2016, NJ raised its gas rate to $.23 per gallon still low compared to CA at 63.79 cents where we have a sales tax on top of the gas tax.
@ucbalumnus:
I know it is the gas tax that is the cause of low gas prices, lived there most of my life, NJ has always had cheaper prices despite having full serve only stations…what I was mentioning was that in trying to get self service approved, people claim it will bring down the price of gas since station owners would not have to have people manning the pumps, and yes that is crock. People would be paying the same for self service as they do for full service, the same way that people taking the ‘discount’ fare will likely be paying what people do for a regular coach seat today, they will raise the price of a traditional ticket and leave the ‘bare bones’ ticket at the old price.
Funny that airline tix & gasoline get mentioned together. They’re the 2 commodities that, while everyone expects the prices of everything else to go up with inflation, there’s a god-given American right to cheap airfares and cheap gasoline.
The inability to select seats means that I will never, ever do this except in the direst emergency. Those folks will all be in center seats in regular economy–with their bag under their feet. It will be pretty awful. And how are they going to be labelled so they don’t dare to try to put a bag in the overhead?
UA basic economy passengers will be in the last boarding group. So everyone else will be able to use the overhead bins before them, which may be the real point. Also, the gate agent can check the last boarding group if they want to enforce it more.
I think the actual intent is that these folks only get to use the overhead bins if there’s excess space after the other groups board before them.
There are too many people bringing bags onboard when airlines charge to check bags. Disallowing bags by the last boarding group will make the turnaround process on the ground go faster. Time is money.
But there will always be some people willing to be “rewarded” for sitting in the middle seat. Before, there was no compensation for it.
Since I have the ability to “zone out” I can live in a middle seat. I can “man spread” as well as the next, be as obnoxious as the person next to me, stuff my bag under a seat 3 inches too short. And ask for your space too.
Set to go. JK.
Next new start-up…selling your over head bin space on a flight…
The passengers who think they’re entitled to the overhead bin space immediately above their assigned row, are a PITA.
GET OVER IT MAN, if you’ve got to put your stuff in the bin across the aisle.
If airlines installed bigger overhead bins (like the Space Bins offered by Boeing), then there would be less “musical chairs” type competition for overhead bin space.
http://www.boeing.com/commercial/737max/space-bins/
http://www.usatoday.com/story/todayinthesky/2015/10/09/will-boeings-new-space-bins-help-ease-the-airline-carry-on-crunch/73577640/
I’ve always thought that the middle seat passengers should pay less than the aisle or window seat folks, so I’m not totally against this. I do hate that the pricing is not transparent though. If the only fares that will show on price comparison sites are the rock bottom no-frills prices, it will be very annoying.
The basic economy fare should be clearly labeled and there will be other choices of fares listed. Someone at flyertalk did dummy reservations for next year and most reservations sites offered several fares.
These fares are designed to compete with the super low-cost carriers such as Spirit Airlines. Anyone flying on them is almost certain to get a middle seat. But on planes to popular vacation destinations like Orlando you will find families with four or five middle seats squealing about how they must be seated together and that other passengers must give up their seats for their comfort. If they needed to be seated together, why didn’t they buy a fare that included seat assignments?
The airlines need to make it clear when these tickets are sold that they will in all likelihood not be together. And they shouldn’t be sold at all to children under the age of five or six since such children shouldn’t be seated alone.