The terrible business class trend is spreading in Europe. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to America

The rise of fees is one of the most frustrating changes of the past decade in the travel world.

We are getting nickel and depreciating with new fees… from service fees, resort fee and baggage fees to seat assignment fees, cleaning fees and environmental fees. You name it; they created a fee for it.

One of the most egregious new charges we’re seeing today is for airplane seat assignment. It is well known that most airlines charge not only for choosing wider legroom but also for ‘priority’ seats in coaches. These standard seat assignments were once free, but now they are targeted by the elite and those willing to spend cash.

Air France and KLM, the general partner (partially owned by Delta Air Lines), now charges customers for enhanced seat assignment in business class. These are seats that can cost upwards of $10,000. But now, once you’ve bought a business class seat (or used your miles to secure it), you’ll have to pay between 70-90 euros ($76-$98) per flight to pre-select a seat.

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Julia Gordon, communications director for Air France USA, said: “With the current seat selection model, Air France and KLM business class customers are not always assured of getting their preferred seat. me. “By introducing Advance Reservations as a paid option, Air France and KLM will increase the chances of our customers actually getting their preferred seat.”

There are some exceptions. Elite members of the Air France-KLM Flying Blue joint loyalty program are free, so if you’re a Silver, Gold or Platinum Flying Blue member, you won’t have to pay to choose your class seat his merchant. You will also be exempted if you fly under the company’s contract with the airlines. Alternatively, you can still choose a business class seat for free from among those still available at the 24-hour check-in window.

One of the more frustrating parts of this is that it hardly has any advance notice. It was ready for flights departing after April 13. It originally included flights to North America, but that was withdrawn due to their transatlantic joint ventures with Delta and Virgin Atlantic. However, if they roll it out once, it can easily come back.

Henry Harteveldt, a passenger, said: “Air France-KLM’s implementation of the change has been poor – charging a person can cost thousands of dollars in fees to reserve a seat if they don’t have customer status. is often an insult.” Travel industry analyst and president of Atmospheric Research. “As a passenger, I’m not at all pleased to see AF ​​and KLM introduce business class seat transfer fees; as an analyst, I’m not surprised.”

In fact, Harteveldt has been predicting fees for business class seats since at least 2016.

Move copying competitors Airline British, has had a similar policy for many years. Lufthansa, Switzerland and some other European carriers also charge for some business class seats.

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Will this spread to US airlines?

The worry, of course, is that it could come to the US market next.

Harteveldt says that will depend on the effect the Air France and KLM fees have on the business.

“They’ll be looking at whether there’s been any change in market share or a negative reaction from the company’s accounts,” said Harteveldt. “Seat transfer fees will soon be coming to US airlines if there is no meaningful negative reaction… then you will see US airlines adopting this model.”

According to Harteveldt, this should be seen as a failure for KLM and Air France as they never took advantage of the lack of fees during the years when British Airways charged for seat assignment and they did not. He also said airlines should consider offering a stripped-down version of business class that’s cheaper and less cumbersome like extra baggage, lounge access and seat selection.

“If they offer an unsatisfactory price like Emirates then that removes everything… [usually included with] “With the reduction in business trips, airlines might consider (base business class fares) if they can sell more. their premium cabin seats,” said Harteveldt.

“I can’t say I’m surprised,” shared Brian Sumers, an industry expert and author of the Airline Observer newsletter. “Air France-KLM has essentially two competitors on the other side of the Atlantic – International Airlines Group and Lufthansa Group. So we know that British Airways has been charging for seats for a while. It’s been a long time and we know that the Lufthansa Group has charged for special throne seats as well.”

“We also have a new development,” Sumers continued. “Lufthansa coming out with new business class, and they will charge for everything. This will be the most complicated configuration for seat fees ever.”

At the same time, Sumers said he understands the reasons behind it, including that business class travel has yet to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In the past, an airline like Air France would sell out the front cabin to bankers and lawyers who didn’t care how much they paid,” Sumers explains. “A lot of that business is gone. TPG readers probably bought a lot of business class tickets for the summer. In their minds, they paid a lot for their tickets, but demand That premium entertainment doesn’t quite replace the business required on a one-on-one basis.”

When I asked him if he thought US airlines would imitate the move, Sumers said: “I think US airlines are more in tune with the political climate than passengers might think. The airlines have taken on enough fees that I think the people doing that at the airlines are taking a closer look before they add a new one.”

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