Alaska Airlines is the latest airline to announce that they will be adding basic economy fares. In the company’s earnings call CEO Brad Tilden stated that:
We plan to roll out a fare segmentation platform in the late fall, which is essentially Alaska’s response to the industry’s basic economy fares, which are now prevalent,
The new fares will be called ‘saver fares’, these passengers will board the plane last and be seated in the back of the plane. Saver fares will not be eligible for upgrades, but they will include seat assignments. Alaska also announced that they will begin charging extra for exit-row seats and eliminate fee waivers on itinerary changes made more than 60 days before travel. These new changes are expected to be implemented later this year.
