Airlines took in nearly $1.3B in baggage fees this year, data shows

Airlines have collected nearly $1.3 billion in baggage fee revenue in the first quarter of 2019 — an increase from the year prior, new data shows.

As of June 17, airlines have collected $1.29 billion in revenue from passenger baggage fees, about a $170 million increase from 2018, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation's latest statistics. During the first quarter last year, airlines took in $1.1 billion in baggage fees.

The airline that collected the most was American Airlines followed by United Airlines and Delta respectively.

Last year, many airlines, including American, United, Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines and JetBlue announced they would be increasing its fees for checked bags and penalties for overweight parcels, Forbes reported.

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To avoid baggage fees, Southwest Airlines, allows the two first checked bags free as long as the luggage doesn’t weigh more than 50 pounds and is a certain size. Some airlines’ credit cards offer perks including free checked baggage.