United, US Airways, ATA Join In Ending Commissions
United, US Airways, ATA Join In Ending Commissions
US Airways this morning announced it eliminated base commissions paid to travel agencies, falling in line with most other carriers, and American Trans Air this afternoon became the first non-major carrier to follow suit. Including an identical announcement from United Airlines late yesterday, the other five largest U.S. carriers now have matched number-three Delta Air Lines' initial move from a week ago, virtually guaranteeing the policy will stick.
The remaining holdouts among the majors--Alaska, America West and Southwest airlines--have not yet announced matching policy changes. Vanguard Airlines this afternoon announced it would continue to pay its travel agents a 5 percent commission with no caps.
Similarly, no international carriers have changed the commission structure for North American travel agencies since the Delta announcement. "Clearly, we are watching with interest but we won't make any quick decisions," said David Noyes, British Airways executive vice president of North America sales and marketing. "Our view is that we want greater transparency and clarity regarding who is being remunerated. The policy we have in the United Kingdom is a policy we'd like to follow with here."