American to offer basic economy to Europe

Parsimonious passengers will able to get basic economy fares on some American Airlines, British Airways,  Iberia and Finnair trans-Atlantic flights to Europe from April. The US carrier is extending its basic economy fares to some trans-Atlantic flights as it faces increased competition for low-cost carriers. The fares will also be offered on codeshare flights with partners. The downside of cheaper basic economy fares is that passengers pay extra for checked baggage and seat reservations. American did not disclose how much it would charge for trans-Atlantic checked baggage but Delta Air Lines, which announced in 207 it would launch basic economy worldwide,  plans to slug passengers to Europe  $US60. Read our ratings for American Airlines or rate them yourself But American says basic economy passengers will get be able to bring on carry-on and will get the same entertainment, soft drinks, snacks and meals as other main cabin customers. Tickets will be non-refundable with no same-day flight change or standby and no upgrades, regardless of elite status level. Unlike the domestic basic economy, however, international passengers will be able to change their tickets for a fee. “We're following the same playbook in this latest expansion as we did for the initial rollout of basic economy,’’ American said in its announcement. “That includes training that began this week for airports and reservations team members and making it available in a limited number of markets first to make sure we get it right. “In general, most options and restrictions for trans-Atlantic Basic Economy are similar to those for domestic Basic Economy or for short-haul international Basic Economy such as flights to Canada, although there are a few differences.” Airlines are getting smarter at extracting additional cash from passengers with a wider range of charges, fees, and commissions expected to boost ancillary revenues by 22 percent this year. The latest estimate of ancillary revenue from CarTrawler and IdeaWorksCompany predicts the cost of extra charges and revenues from areas other than fares will reach $US82.2 billion in 2017, with carriers such as Frontier, Ryanair, Spirit, and Wizz continuing to lead the charge. Read: Ancillary revenues up 22 percent as airlines extract cash.