Why did soda/snack become mandatory on planes anyway? So funny watching the attendants on a 1/2 an hour flight scurry at breakneck pace to deliver beverage service. IS ANYBODY REALLY THAT FUCKING THIRSTY?!

I was done with US Airways ever since I took a flight that included about an hour of commercials played over the TV's with loudspeaker (i.e. not headphone jack) audio. Oh, and the tray tables had giant verizon ad stickers stuck to them, which I ripped off and crumpled up before I deplaned.

It just means poorer service in the cabin as the stewardesses have to stop and search for "change for a twenty, anyone?"

It's stupid. And only stupid people like the idea. You know, airline CEO's . . . .

FUEL. PRICES. HAVE. GONE. UP. The airlines can't afford to keep giving you what you've been getting for what you've been paying. Starting to charge for drinks is saving you from the prices going up. Prices staying the same when they would otherwise go up is still GOOD FOR YOU.

Even the title of this article specifies BOTTLED water costing money. I doubt the stewardess will refuse you TAP water in a cup, but even if they would, nothing stops you from bringing an empty bottle and filling it in the terminal as 100 other people have pointed out.

Everyone who says "ZOMG I ONLY FLY SOUTHWEST," I'm happy for you. But I personally don't want to fly with all the Wal-mart shopping, penny pinching riff-raff so I'll continue to pay $10 more a ticket for an assigned seat on Delta/United/USAir.

@u1itn0w2day: So you're saying you'd rather your total flying cost go up $5 in a way you have no control over, than to go up $2 and be able to opt out of it by bringing your own damn water. Even if you said $2 instead of $5, I think you're crazy. Why would you rather be charged assuming you'll be thirsty rather than paying only for what you consume?

That's the sort of attitude the theater owners would love. Movie tickets are now $25 instead of $10 but they include COMPLETELY FREE popcorn, candy, and soda! If you don't want or need those things, it's okay! You still get the same low $25 price as everyone else.

This is why I love SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

Fine. But they need to start allowed passengers to carry their own food and liters of water again.

In the last few weeks, I've flown JetBlue, US Air and Spirit. US Air did not charge for drinks, but Spirit did. Plus, the Spirit flight was delayed boarding for an hour, then we sat on the tarmac for an hour waiting to take off. Fortunately, I had purchased drinks and food in the gate area before boarding.

Also, when payment was required onboard, it was credit or debit card only, no cash.

seriously though thats cuntish and I will refuse to pay for my drinks in August: I bought those tickets BEFORE these rules were emplaced.

On the first leg, we were offered pretzels with our water or soda. On the second leg (I didn't change planes) we were offered soda or water. I asked for a package of pretzels and was told they were eliminated over the weekend, and the last ones were given out on the last leg.

@Vanguarde: Oooh, you're so macho. Discomfort means nothing to you. You have the stamina of a bull. Just thinking about it makes me horny.

No food, no drinks, basic toilet. No TV, no Phone, no Net, nothing.

You pay for the airline to in essence HAUL you from one place to another.

If it saved me hundreds, I would do it. Hell, I would even sit on the floor strapped down to a harness in case the plane broke open. No seats.

This has been going on for YEARS. Who are they?

Cargo.

Cargo is more cost effective.

The more airlines treat people like cargo, the more everyone will save.

I always hated paying for fluff nonsense while in flight. Just shut up and wait the time it takes to get to where you want to go.

@Lewis: I see that someone already made the suggestion to bring your own empty bottle to fill up at a drinking fountain in the terminal. Just want to add that there are drink bottles that collapse flat. Check online or go to your nearest high-tech backpacker store.

There's also Camelback's for water.

@speedwell: Wow, I picked that site at random, and after hours of searching I can't find a better deal on a top-quality water filter bottle. I don't work for them... I just noticed the same exact thing is selling from 29 to 39 dollars elsewhere, with occasional dips to 19 on sale.

@goodcow:

Yeah, great, for NYC-DC, and sometimes for NYC-Boston.

For any other run, terrible, unless you have a LOT of time on your hands.

Boston-DC (one of the best-served Amtrak corridors):

Acela (fastest Amtrak): 6 hours, 32 minutes

Delta or US Airways Shuttle: 1 hour, 33 minutes

Even if it takes you an extra 45 minutes on public transport to Logan and from National, you're looking at 3.5 hours faster than taking the train.

For anything outside of the Northeast Corridor, the comparison is even more absurd.

This is also likely a weight issue. Fewer drinks sold, fewer beverages carried. Less weight carried, less fuel burned.

@Franklin Comes Alive!:

Yes, I have flown SWA, and yes, I still prefer selecting my seat ahead of time and not having to (a) check in exactly at the 24 hour mark, and (b) making sure I'm there at the gate before the boarding process starts.

I can but a 12 pack of Coke 12 ounce cans for around $2.50 in Connecticut.

That works out to just over 20 cents per can.

The airlines DO NOT need to make 1000 percent profit off of their customers on a soft drink.

In addition, they probably pay a lot less than 20 cents per can.

Where's the voting option for "F**k NO!"??

I've never understood the need to serve a beverage on short hops. People really can't go 1 or 2 hours without a drink? They don't even make it through the cabin until 5 minutes before landing sometimes.

Get rid of the drink cart altogether on flights less then 2 hours. Have small bottles of water available for special circumstances.

Business class Amtrak FTW.

On another note, Lufthansa provides free beer. How cool is that?

This is another in a long list of reasons to avoid United/US Air (yes, I'm lumping 'em together since they're basically joined at the hip by contract). I'll fly everyone else, thank you.

@ShariC: So, only people who fit your definition of "most" people should fly? That's hell of convenient. No diabetics, small children, people with medical conditions, or the like are to be allowed on board, right? Suffering builds character, right?

Hey, if you're going to bring an empty bottle with you and fill it from the airport tap, it should be one of these inexpensive filter bottles, or a similar filter bottle from another seller: [www.homelandpreparedness.com]

Then if you are flying out of an area where the water is questionable, you can still carry your empty bottle through and fill it at the tap. Come to think of it, if you're going to an area where the water is questionable, one of these will definitely need to be in your kit.

Okay, let me understand something here...$15 for a checked bag (i.e. no free baggage allowance) and $2 for a drink... didn't they try this at the now-defunct Skybus Airlines? Clearly not a sustainable business model.

Also...Southwest and JetBlue are referred to as "discount" carriers, yet they are now providing more than most of the "full service"/legacy carriers - no charge for checked bags (the first one at least), complementary beverages and televisions at your seats for no extra charge (on JetBlue). I don't get it.

Seriously though, I have had to do a lot of flying lately on several different carriers, and my observation has consistently been that it's getting more and more like taking a Greyhound bus.

I actually can't wait for the manditory $100 per incident screaming baby fee!

But really, how long before they begin to cut off water to the bathroom sinks when they realize that people are bringing in empty bottles and filling them on their own? On that day I will wear a full body condom when traveling because there will be a lot of unwashed hands all over that aircraft...

Do we tip now that were paying 2$ to be served a 35 cent can of soda or a 4$ sandwich you can get for 1.75 @ 7-11.
You INSULT the passengers who know what these things cost and make the airlines seem that much greedier.

Are these flying snack bars subject to licensing and inspections just as if they were on the ground?Can you get a refund if they screw up your order.This is worst than the subliminal salt and popcorn pictures in movies.It's called airplane AIR.

Just build the fraken prices into the ticket instead of trying disguise it or make it SEEM more fair.Every ticket,just raise it by let's say 5$,EVERY TICKET:just build it into the price.

Either way, I fly Delta, so this doesn't apply to me...yet, anyway.

I'd buy my drinks at the gate. Who wants to pay $2 for warm soda anyhow? About half the time I fly, my ice tastes like chemicals. I don't like ice anyway. It dilutes my precious caffeine.

"Hello, this is your captain speaking. As you know, this is a "metered" flight. Please deposit $50.00 in the seatback bill slot if you wish to get to your destination."

Years ago, liquor & beer, meals, and other amenities all used to be "free" with your ticket purchase. Only they weren't really free, they were embedded in the ticket price. As profit margins shrunk, airlines started to charge for these things too, to make up for lost profits. You got used to paying extra for these; you'll get used to paying for soft drinks too.

I'm flying at the end of this month, and I'll be flying Business class (thanks to my wife's upgrade vouchers). I really can't see flying 18 hours to South Africa any other way.

@badgeman46: On what planet are individuals going to be able to afford $17,700 (even split three ways) to fly from, say, Nashville to D.C.? Luckily, Linear doesn't charge fuel surcharges - wow!

No, because I will not be flying US Airways.

The checked bag fees are worse since it just encourages people to carry on which makes the battle for overhead space more fierce and makes going through security take longer.

I hope they start charging by weight. Instead of searching for total fare you will search for fare per pound. As a thin person who knows how to pack light I would save a ton.

If this was fark I would make some comment about how you could always bring an empty water bottle through security and fill it at a water fountain. However, it is Consumerist so I will refrain.

The SWA zealots are a lot like the credit union or USAA zealots in the bank threads. Not everyone can fly SWA.

piss on it....i'll fix 'em...i just wont fly.....

In addition to Southwest's fuel hedging, I'm under the impression that they don't have the debt load that Untied and the others are carrying, (as a result of the financing of leveraged buyouts.

Does anyone know if that is true - and if it is still true after an airline declares bankruptcy?

If I can bring my own drinks, then it's not a problem. it's only $2 anyway. The only problem I forsee is if passengers don't bring cash or the airline can't accept big notes or whatever. You don't travel on the bus or train and expect free drinks, so why in the air? People are just getting used to the way things used to be. Things are changing, accept it and everything will be fine. Airlines need to make money and they are no longer giving away the freebies they used to be able to. If you're the type to whine about paying for additional services above being flown to somewhere, then get over it. It's not going to change soon and I don't see why it should.

[www.usairways.com]

Good thing USAir doesn't have much of a market where I normally fly. I will never fly them. Soemthing needs to happen because if airlines keep adding stupid fees they won't have any customers to pay the fees.

@MadameX:

Why the other airlines don't look at their business model and try to copy it is beyond me.

Oh, that's easy. They have no incentive. They know Uncle Sam will keep bailing them out for as long as they cry "Bankruptcy!"

If trains were a viable option in this country for long-haul travel, airlines would have serious competition and wouldn't be pulling this nonsense -- they'd have to run their business like, well, a business.

My mom brings an empty bottle through security and then fills it up at a drinking foutain. But after a couple hours, I get thirsty.

Water should always be free. I hope.

So yeah, from repeated personal experiences, having to fly Southwest negatively affects my quality of life.

US Airways is not a preferred carrier, but they had the best ticket prices for our Cancun vacation in August by more than $75 per seat. These nickel & dime charges are what kept us from flying Spirit (along with their tendency to cancel flights), but I think that it will end up being a wash when compared to the other legacy carrier options we had (primarily American). Will we pay $2 for onboard beverages? Probably not since we will have advance notice so that we can get something at the airport along with a decent sandwich for lunch.

"Are you going to stand for this?"

That's what next, no seats!

Thanks for doing your part to keep America safe from the terrists.

I personally couldn't care less if they canned the whole drink cart.

Perhaps the CEO should get $1M/year less; I'm sure that'd appease stockholders, keep jobs, and eliminate these stupid additions that are just going to earn them less customers.

Crazy moon talk, I know.

I feel bad for the flight attendents. You know this is going to make people take it out on them.

anyway, 1 gal clear plastic bag filled with as many individual 3oz containers filled with koolaid as possible.

i am doing it.

Copying Southwest would mean massive changes, which would be admitting failure. Think any of the airlines are going to do that?

Slightly OT, but the whole point of the US Airways - America West merger was to create one more efficient airline. Due to the inability of the new company to reach an agreement between the US Airways and America West pilots' unions, they are still operating internally as two completely independent airlines, just under one corporate moniker. That can't be good for efficient operation.

i wouldn't mind this so much if we were still allowed to carry our *own* beverages through security, but we all know how the TSA feels about that. and the kicker to all this is the fact that beverages (and other snacks) are jacked up once you clear TSA. so either way, the consumer is getting bent over.

either way, i'm fine with this. does that mean my ticket will now be cheaper?

People! Its alright that these airlines are comitting business suicide. In 5 years or so, or even maybe this year, you will be getting on your own private jet from that airport down the street you got breakfast at or watched Cessna's take off at when you were a kid. They will take you an equally small airport at your destination, non-stop, all service. Until a legacy airline decides they are going to offer old school luxury service, the legacy's are doomed to fail. To feel what I am screaming, or smell what I'm stepping in, visit these sites: [www.dayjet.com] [www.linearair.com]

I don't mind the extra charges (use tax) but I suspect the result will be longer lines (esp. at security) and less space and increased delays as more and more people try to carry on all luggage. And that I do mind.

[www.usatoday.com]

Why the other airlines don't look at their business model and try to copy it is beyond me. Even if they did everything else but still assigned seats? Southwest is obviously doing something right.

that idea works in theory only if the airlines were to drop the cost of the ticket. if these are all ADDITIONAL charges then we're simply getting less for our money.

I think they should be able to charge what they want...but then I should also be able to bring my own bottles and drinks onto the plane. it makes no sense to take away my drink then offer me the exact same drink except charge me $2

I'd rather have $17 off my ticket if I don't need to check a bag of drink a drink.

It's Southwest. For years they have been profitable and have spent a lot of that money on fuel hedges, so they usually pay a lot less per barrel than most of the other airlines. Some of the others do it as well, but none to the level that SW does.

@choinski: Only 1 airliner has done this. I can't remember what it's called, but they buy their fuel at some low price. I will have to look up what company but it on a CNN special.

I think the $15 for first bag trend is more egregious than the $2 beverage charge... not because I'd ever check a bag, but because this is going to lead to a miserable lack of overhead storage.

I really think Amtrak is the best option in the NEC... and though they do charge you for (bottled) water, it's usually just a far better experience all around.

On the air travel side, there are plenty of alternatives to the legacy carriers (Virgin America stands out, so does Jet Blue, never flew SW) so vote with your wallet, not just on a blog post. :)

This is stupid. The airlines should just charge one fee: The 'Sorry, but fuel went up and we can't be expexted to eat the loss fee'. That way, customers don't get nickled and dimes on petty stuff, the airline can maintain a decent level of services, and everyone can focus on the real added cost.

If that is unreasonable, then airlines should buy the fuel they need in advance if the flight and charge the ticket based on the actual costs of that fuel.

Well if you are not willing to pay for it in the plane then they will just lean on the businesses in the concourse until they are charging $5 for a 20oz. cola.

Then $2 for a cup of ice and a splash of water will not seem so bad.

Also, local amusement park charges 3,50$ for a coke anyway. And you don't even fly.

WOW! I just came back from Italy and the flight time from Miami to Rome was 8 hours going and 8.40 coming back. If there was nothing to drink for that amount of time I guess I would be forced to pay for the liquid....and hopefully not just a small plastic cup with half ice and a few drops of soda/juice/water....

wow, the economy is tough!

I'm sure glad I only fly from San Diego to Sacramento and only have to fly Southwest. Fill up at a drinking fountain before I leave and bring a Snickers bar and all is good.

I have sworn off all other flights this year, so far I have survived and may continue my personal boycott of the airline industry indefinitely.

Why did I think that it was mandatory that passengers on a flight get water if the flight is greater than a certain amount of time? Maybe that was internal policies, but I swear that a flight attendant told me that once.

I wasn't alive back then, but I did fly in the 1970s and I recall there was definitely some systemic incentive to make the passengers comfortable rather than to just pacify them, be a seatbelt monitor, and clock out for the day. I remember just after boarding a Flying Tigers 747 charter flight back in the early 1980s, a flight attendant (stewardess?) correctly sensed my 8-year old sister was afraid of flying and actually spent 5 or 6 minutes with her talking with her and making her feel better. Now that is service. Never seen anything like that since... not by a country mile.

So when they finally get their wish of fewer customers and they end up with a plane with only 10 people on it will they:
A)cancel the flight.
B)Encourage the flight attendants to plus sell those 10 people about $20,000 worth of snacks on the 3 hour flight.

You might think A but they have shown that they are not that good at decision making.

Have you actually tried to fly SW? I hear this complaint all the time, but if you are organized and can get yourself checked in on time, the open seating is way better than assigned seating. I find the most common users of this reasoning either (a) haven't flown SW or (b) don't check themselves in 24 hours in advance and end up at the end of the C line.

Agreed, though, that water is one thing that should always be complimentary, just about everywhere.

Not sure what people expect the (legacy) airlines to do though. First, there are till just too many carriers competing for the same routes. Next, consumers have demonstrated repeatedly that they will select the cheapest flight to their destination with relatively little regard for the carrier. As long as (coach) air travel continues to be a commodity, it will continue to be a race to the bottom among the legacy carriers.

Water takes it a bit far though.

Now, the problem comes if this becomes widespread.

I wonder if it's $2 for that dinky little cup they give you.

Ha, this is utter BS, becuase we're not talking about 12oz sodas, I'm sure. They will be opening a soda and pouring a bit into a 8-10oz cup filled with ice.

$2 for that tiny cup of juice? no thanks.
Fewer people will want to use the bathroom if they don't get drinks. Are they trying to send out another message?

I don't get all these people voting no, as if they had a choice.

I'll be swallowing my own spit.

Sure...for a six-pack or two 2-Liters...