Spirit A320 ©PhillipC
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A change in Department of Transportation regulations is being blamed for a new $2 Sprint Airlines fee. The regulation requires airlines to allow passengers to change their flight within 24 hours of booking without paying a penalty.
The new fee has been dubbed the “Department of Transportation Unintended Consequences Fee,” by Spirit Airlines and it has been added to each ticket.
Spirit maintains that the regulation is detrimental to the airline because it forces them to reserve a seat for someone who may or may not want to fly, while someone who really does want to fly might not be able to purchase a ticket because the seat is being held.
The Department of Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood, fired back to Spirit’s cheeky new fee with the following response:
“This is just another example of the disrespect with which too many airlines treat their passengers… rather than coming up with new and unnecessary fees to charge their customers, airlines should focus on providing fair and transparent service — that’s what our common sense rules are designed to ensure.”
Despite your feelings about the $2 charge, you have to give Spirit credit for the tongue-in-cheek name of their new fee. If only all fees were so facetiously named… like a “line cutter pass” for priority boarding, or a “overpacker’s fee” for that 2nd checked bag.
Read more at CNN.