From the LA Times:
Travelers protested when airlines began charging bag fees in 2008, claiming the extra charge was a blatant money grab. But a new study concludes that the nation’s airlines quietly lowered fares slightly to make the bag fees more palatable to those fliers who would get stuck paying the new charge. Still, the airlines are coming out ahead because the drop in fares was so small that it did not totally offset the added cost of checking a bag, the study found. “The fact that the airlines are doing it must mean they are coming out ahead,” said Jan Brueckner, an economics professor at UC Irvine who co-authored the study with other economics experts. The study will appear later this year in the Journal of Economics and Management Strategy. A trade group that represents the nation’s airlines did not dispute Brueckner’s theory, saying fares are lower now that airlines are charging fees for extra services like checking bags.

For the full story, please visit http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-lowered-airfares-do-not-o....