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Qantas extras near the top
TRAVELCONSUMERDAILY.COM
QANTAS is the world’s fourth-ranked airline for ancillary revenue – but, unlike many others, most of those funds don’t come from the normal chargeable extras borne by consumers for items like checked baggage. Australian consultancy the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation reports that, according to a study by US firm IdeaWorks, Qantas is a leading protagonist in the industry’s “ancillary revenue tidal wave” because of its frequent flyer scheme, which makes hundreds of millions of dollars profit each year by selling flight entitlements to partner airlines and a range of retailers. IdeaWorks says its analysis of 2009 results for 96 airlines shows the global industry increased its ancillary revenue to $US13.72 billion in 2009 from just $4.14 billion in 2008 for items including baggage fees, food, hotel, hire car and travel insurance commissions and frequent flyer revenue. America’s United Airlines topped the list with $1.9 billion, followed by American Airlines ($1.88 billion) and Delta ($1.38) with Qantas in fourth ($779 million). Europe’s biggest low-cost carrier Ryanair, which has no frequent-flyer program but charges consumers aggressively for a wide range of extras, was next with $573 million. According to IdeaWorks, the leader for ancillary charges per passenger is US low-cost holiday carrier Allegiant Airlines ($US31), which links small American cities which otherwise do not have direct flights with hubs including Orlando, Florida, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Los Angeles, California.
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