The argument that the airline industry is going to use to defend the maintenance of the current system for the pricing of checked baggage is exactly the same as that of five years ago, when Anac released the sale of a category of tickets only with hand luggage.
After the House vote on Tuesday (26), which tries to rescue the old model, airline executives say it is more democratic to sell the ticket without a suitcase because it is cheaper. But the issue of price became complex.
Before the change, in 2017, the sector said that if the proportional charge for the customer’s bags was released, the price of the category without luggage would fall.
The problem is that, at the time, the dollar, which impacts the sector’s costs, was around R$3 and today is around R$5, according to Eduardo Sanovicz, president of Abear, which brings together airlines. The sector is also going through a period of high fuel prices.
“The current pricing model provides for a cheaper fare than the others for those who travel without luggage. What was done yesterday in the Chamber was not to create free luggage. If this project passes the Senate, the cost of dispatch will be shared among those who travel with luggage and those who travel without. But everyone pays”, says Sanovicz.
The sector also argues that the release of the category without dispatch is a model that works in the main world markets, such as Europe and the USA, and that the return to the old system can scare away a movement of entry of low cost companies in Brazil, which was interrupted by the pandemic.
The text will still be considered by the Senate – if it is not voted on by June 1, it loses its validity.​
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