United Airlines is adding 10 dollars to its checked bag prices, the first time the carrier has raised these fees in two years. The increase applies to tickets purchased starting Friday.
New baggage pricing
First and second bags on domestic, Mexican, Canadian, and Latin American routes go from 35 dollars to 45 dollars when prepaid, and from 40 dollars to 50 dollars when paid within 24 hours of departure. Third bags now cost 200 dollars, up 50 dollars from the prior rate.
Passengers still save 5 dollars by prepaying online the day before their flight. United Chase cardholders, MileagePlus Premier members, active military personnel, and premium cabin passengers continue to check bags free.
The fuel price connection
United declined to directly link the baggage increase to the Iran war, but jet fuel has nearly doubled in cost since the conflict began. Argus data shared by Airlines for America shows jet fuel averaging 4.88 dollars per gallon in major U.S. markets, up more than 95 percent from pre-war levels.
CEO Scott Kirby gave employees a sense of the scale in a recent memo: “If prices stayed at this level, it would mean an extra 11 billion dollars in annual expense just for jet fuel.” He noted that even in United’s strongest year, profits fell below 5 billion dollars.
Kirby added that passenger demand remains robust, with the most recent 10 weeks marking the highest booked revenue in company history.
The industry follows suit
JetBlue implemented similar increases in late March, with first checked bags now running 39 dollars on non-peak days and 49 dollars during peak periods. No other major carriers have announced changes yet, but airlines frequently match each other’s pricing moves.
UAL shares traded at 92.21 on Thursday, down roughly 3 percent.