So, ladies and gentlemen.. beginning 21 April 2008, AirAsia will be charging RM5 for each baggage you put into the plane’s cargo (RM3 each if you book at least a day before). Of course, that doesn’t include the charges if your total baggage weight exceeds 15 kg. The reason? Datuk Tony Fernandez said (in The Sun, 08/04/2008) “the move is to help AirAsia maintain its low fares despite the rise in fuel cost.”

Okay, so their logic is.. charge the passengers for checked baggage and we maintain the fuel surcharge.

“With airlines moving towards an ‘ala carte’ pricing structure, people have found it acceptable to pay for services that they choose to purchase, just as they have accepted paying for meals. By charging a baggage handling fee, passengers will bring only what they need, making the system more efficient for everyone and lower costs for the airlines.“

That sounds reasonable. I can now see more passengers travel light and hand-carry their baggage. And since there’s a marked lack of enforcement on the number of baggage one can carry on board, each passenger will have at least 4. Which, of course, is nothing really new. I see that everytime I fly with AirAsia.

AirAsia Checked Baggage

For an average traveller like me, this won’t be an issue since I always travel light. For families, though.. I expect to hear some loud protests pretty soon. After all, they will be the hardest affected.

So, can everyone now fly? How about you?

Update [29/09/2008]: It is now bloody RM 10 per checked-in baggage and RM 15 per excess kilo. I found that out the hard way when I was checking in for my Hari Raya holiday yesterday. Bloody Air Asia!

 

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