American and Delta increased checked-bag fees, so will Hawaiian Airlines follow suit?

Hawaiian Airlines, which generated $42.6 million in baggage fees through midyear, has been standing pat as other carriers move to increase their one-way checked-bag fees.

American Airlines announced on Thursday it would raise by $5 its checked-bag fees to $30 for the first bag and $40 for the second bag. The move matched a similar increase announced by Delta Airlines on Wednesday. Both carriers were following $5 increases that were declared in late August — first by JetBlue Airways and then by United Airlines.

Airlines depend on baggage fees and other ancillary income to help bolster revenue.

Hawaiian spokeswoman Ann Botticelli said Friday that the company cannot comment about future pricing but noted that the airline’s bag fees have been stable since 2014.

The move by airlines to increase checked-bag fees follows a year in which U.S. carriers made $4.58 billion in such income. Through the first half of this year, airlines generated $2.36 billion in baggage revenue, according to data released earlier this week by the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Hawaiian took in $22.1 million in bag fees and $6.4 million in reservation cancellation and change fees during the second quarter. Through six months, Hawaiian’s cancellation and change fees totaled $12.5 million.

Last year Hawaiian exceeded $100 million in baggage and reservation cancellation/change fees for the third straight year. During 2017 it generated $81.2 million in baggage fees and $22.8 million in cancellation/change fees for a combined $103.98 million.

Overall, the 11 reporting U.S. airlines took in $1.24 billion in baggage fees during the second quarter, up 5.5 percent from $1.18 billion from the year-earlier period. Airlines’ reservation and change fees (Southwest does not charge fees to cancel or change flights) fell 5.9 percent to $693.9 million from $737.4 million.

American Airlines collected the most in baggage fees with $313.3 million and the most in reservation and change fees with $226.7 million. American 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.

American also is threatening to prohibit customers from making changes to nonrefundable tickets if Congress makes good on a proposal to crack down on what critics call unreasonable airline fees.

American CEO Doug Parker says that his airline would be acting just like many other businesses when customers want to swap their ticket for a different flight or for another day.

“We — like the baseball team, like the opera — would say, ‘We’re sorry, it was nonrefundable,’” Parker said this week.

Changing a domestic ticket on the largest airlines typically costs $200.

The Senate has voted to tell the Transportation Department to make sure that various fees — including ticket-change and baggage charges — reflect the airline’s actual cost for providing the extra service. The House has not yet gone along, and the fate of the Senate provision, contained in a bill governing the Federal Aviation Administration, is unclear, especially with Congress rushing toward adjournment before the November midterm elections.

Associated Press contributed to this story.