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Many people flying with American Airlines will have to fork over more money to check their bags.
The Texas-based airline on Tuesday unveiled increases in fees many customers will have to pay for first and second checked bags that went into effect.
Previously, the checked bag fee for domestic flights was a flat $30 at the counter and online. American upped how much it charges for a first bag checked at airport counters from $30 to $40. Fees for bags checked online increased to $35. The cost of all second bags is $45 for domestic flights, up from $40.
Tuesday’s hikes, which rolled out for domestic, Canadian and short-haul international flights, marked the first changes in American Airlines checked bag fees in about six years.
American Airlines aircraft are seen at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. (Photo by Alex Tai/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images / Getty Images)
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Canadian flights and short-haul flights to and from the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and Guyana received a similarly-sized hike for their fees, becoming $35 for first checked bags (up from $30) and $45 for second, according to the airline (up from $40).
American Airlines Group Inc.
“Customers who purchase premium cabins on domestic and international flights will continue to receive complimentary bags,” American Airlines noted. “American also offers complimentary bags to active-duty US military personnel on all American flights.”
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It also kept carve outs for AAdvantage status members, whom American gives free checked bags, and AAdvantage credit card members, most of whom also get that perk for their first bag on domestic flights, according to the airline.
The increases in the checked luggage fees coincided with some changes to other American Airlines charges.
An American Airlines flight is seen ahead of departure at the Austin Bergstrom International Airport on Jan. 15 in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Beginning April 17, the carrier said it will have an additional $30 dollar fee for checked bags that weigh over 50 pounds up to 53 pounds, and the same fee for bags up to three inches larger than 62-inches.
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American Airlines has also made it more expensive for customers to bring an eligible pet on-board on a carrier. That fee, now $150 per carrier as of Tuesday, has gone up by $25.
The airline flew nearly 210.7 million people on its aircraft in 2023.
