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US senators grill airline officials about fees for seats and checked bags

A U.S. Senate subcommittee has held a hearing to question the growing use of airline fees to charge passengers for things like early boarding and better seats.

Members of a U.S. Senate subcommittee took aim at airline executives Wednesday for using an expanding menu of fees to charge customers for early boarding, better seats and other comforts that used to be part of the ticket price. “Our customers who prioritize affordability have the option to choose a lower-fare product and, in doing so, opt out of paying for additional services that they do not want,” Andrew Nocella, the chief commercial officer of United Airlines, said in testimony prepared for the panel’s hearing. Frontier Chief Commercial Officer Robert Schroeter and his counterpart at Spirit, Matthew Klein, said ensuring that people follow the rules was a matter of fairness to all passengers.

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