Checked‑bag fees keep rising

Major U.S. airlines have pushed checked‑bag fees into the roughly $45–$60+ range this year as carriers seek to offset higher fuel costs, a trend reported across industry coverage on April 16 ( ). Southwest has also been reported to allow a narrow free‑bag exception on certain West Coast routes, though the carve‑out appears limited and the exact eligible bag types and cities were not specified in the April coverage (travel.yahoo.com).