Hawaiian Air’s bag fees hit $21M in last quarter

Baggage fees continue to provide a steady stream of revenue for Hawaiian Airlines.

The state’s largest carrier took in $21 million in bag fees during the second quarter to boost its midyear total to $40.8 million and put the company on track to meet or exceed the $81.2 million it received in 2015, according to data released Monday by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Hawaiian’s bag fees last quarter were slightly less than the $21.5 million it took in during the second quarter of 2015.

The airline has been looking for different revenue sources and also charges separately for Extra Comfort and Preferred Seats offerings, which combined for an average of $4 million in revenue per month during the second quarter. Hawaiian is in the beginning stages of its lie-flat seating and its first-class seat auction program called Bid-Up.

“The unbundled model lets passengers choose which services they value and would like to pay for,” Hawaiian spokesman Alex Da Silva said. “This helps keep base fare prices lower for the budget traveler. For neighbor island flights, HawaiianMiles (frequent flier) members have discounted first- and second-checked bags.”

Island Air, which added more routes in the second quarter, also took in more bag revenue. The state’s second-largest airline collected $822,000 in bag revenue, up 10.5 percent from $744,000 in the year-earlier period.

Both Hawaiian and Island Air also saw increases in reservation cancellation and change fees. Hawaiian’s change fees rose 20.8 percent to $5.7 million from $4.7 million, while Island Air’s change fees increased 44.2 percent to $111,000 from $77,000.

Hawaiian is in line with most airlines in charging $25 for a first checked bag and $35 for a second. On interisland flights HawaiianMiles members pay $15 and $20, respectively, for first and second checked bags.

Island Air charges $15 for a first checked bag and $25 for a second checked bag.

Overall, the 13 reporting U.S. airlines made $1.1 billion from baggage fees in the second quarter, up 11.5 percent from $962.4 million in the year-earlier period.

American Airlines became the first major carrier to charge for a first checked bag when it assessed passengers $15 in May 2008 to help offset soaring fuel costs.