Did you know airline ancillary revenues for 2013 reportedly reached 6% of the $708 billion spent worldwide on airfares? That’s $42.4 billion with the estimates reported by IdealWorks Company, who track results from Air Transport World, Airlines Business and airline websites.
These revenue numbers have been growing and will not be going away, in fact they are critical survival and profitability for an airline. For those who manage travel costs, knowing, tracking and having the ability to report for the purpose of negotiating with airlines for corporate discounts is paramount.
These airline revenues are known to us as ancillary fees including:
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Onboard sales of food and beverages
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Checking of baggage and excess baggage
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Assigned seats or better seats such as exit rows
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Call center support for reservations
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Fees charged for purchases made with credit cards
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Priority check-in and screening
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Early boarding benefits
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Onboard entertainment systems
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Wireless internet access and one carrier was in the press rumored to have plans to charge to use the lavatory!
The best solution to leverage reporting data on these extra charges by today’s business travelers are from having a T&E solution partner, who can slice and dice the data so you can be empowered to sit down with those airline representatives who want your business.
You will be able to include several of these as waivers or obtain discounts based on your ability to shift market share. This has become Travel Management 101 especially in the North America, where airlines have continued to merge, the latest, USAIR and American Airlines. Consider: Continental/United, Northwest/Delta and AirTran/Southwest. Have you noticed fewer choices and higher fares?
Related Article: Creating Travel Policy That Works
A good expense solution partner will work travel management companies and their corporate customers who want an ROI on implementing an automated solutions with the added benefits to equip their procurement teams with the critical data to negotiate not only with airlines, but with hotels, car rental companies, ground service providers and in some cases, even their entertainment and dining choices to manage expense policies to decrease costs.
T&E expenditures for most companies costs represent the second highest controllable annual expense, exceeded only by salary & benefits, and is commonly higher than IT and/or real estate costs.
DATABASICS provides cloud-based, next generation Expense Reporting, P-Card Management, Timesheet & Leave Management, and Invoice Processing automation. Specializing in meeting the most rigorous requirements, DATABASICS offers the highest level of service to its customers around the world.
DATABASICS is relied upon by leading organizations representing all the major sectors of the global economy: financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, research, retail, engineering, non-profits/NGOs, technology, federal contractors, and other sectors.
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