Carry-on or pay extra to check a bag on American Airlines

FORT WORTH, Texas — American Airlines will become the first major U.S. airline to start charging domestic coach passengers for checking even one bag.

American, the nation's largest carrier, said that it will begin charging some domestic economy class passengers $15 each way for the first checked bag, cut domestic flights and lay off workers as it grapples with record-high fuel prices.

"Frankly, I expect the other Big Six carriers to match American's move with lightning speed," said Joe Brancatelli, publisher of Joesentme.com, a newsletter for business travelers. "And, frankly, I expect absolute chaos at ticket counters around the nation. Unlike the second-bag fee, which affected a small number of travelers, a huge percentage of travelers check one bag."

A spokesman for Seattle-based Alaska Airlines said it has no plans to charge customers for a first checked bag. American's rival, Delta, said it doesn't plan to match American's fee, but United Airlines said it's under consideration.

American said the fee for the first checked bag starts June 15, and that it would raise other fees for services ranging from reservation help to oversized bags. The other fees will mostly range from $5 to $50 per service, the airline said.

American carries about 6 percent of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport's passengers.

Last month American announced it would join other major carriers (except for Southwest) in charging $25 for second bags checked by domestic coach passengers who are not elite members of the airlines' frequent flier programs. Alaska Airlines will begin charging the extra fee on July 1.

American said its new policy means that customers who purchase domestic economy class tickets before June 15, 2008 may check one bag for free and check a second bag for $25 each way. Customers who buy tickets on or after June 15, will be charged $15 each way for the first checked bag and $25 each way for the second checked bag.

Brancatelli predicted that if other airlines go along with American's new policy, a large number of fliers will try to slim down to carry-on weight. That would translate into longer waits at security checkpoints and chaos at the gate as travelers find there is no room in overhead bin, he predicted.

American plans to cut domestic flight capacity by 11 percent to 12 percent in the fourth quarter. American had previously expected fourth-quarter capacity to fall 4.6 percent from the same period in 2007.

Parent AMR Corp. said reduced flying will lead to an undisclosed number of job cuts at both American and its American Eagle subsidiary.

AMR expects to retire 45 to 50 planes from its fleet, most of them gas-guzzling MD-80 aircraft. Those were the plane grounded for faulty wiring last month.

American said rising oil prices have increased its expected annual fuel costs by nearly $3 billion since the start of the year.

Seattle Times travel writer Carol Pucci contributed to this report.