Over the Thanksgiving Holiday Southwest Airlines hiked one-way fares by $10. The increase marks the fifth price hike from the low-cost carrier this year, with the last coming in June. The fare boost comes as Southwest faces rising fuel and labor costs.
Southwest said it raised fares $10 each way on routes of more than 1,000 miles and $3 on flights of more than 750 and less 1,000. The fare increases took effect on Thursday and affect about 20 percent of its customers.
The parent company of American Airlines, AMR Corp., (AMR), United Airline's parent company, UAL Corp., (UAUA) and Continental Airlines Inc., (CAL) all matched the price increases.
Southwest is facing the prospects of having their hedged fuel slowly coming to an end and having to renegoiate with the industry's highest paid pilots.
I am going to have to agree with a fare hike by Southwest Airlines. They are playing it smart. They are saying let's keep our costs under control as much as we can, but where things might get expensive lets start looking at ways now to save money instead of having to deal with the issue when it arrises and things might be a bit more complex.
What's your take on fare increases? Are they wise decisions?
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