Airport Fee And Tax Scams

Do you know how much your airline ticket really costs? After purchasing my daughter Jane's ticket to Argentina I am beginning to see the scam that governments are running on unsuspecting airline passengers. That is, the crazy number of taxes and fees (What is a government's definition of a tax and a fee? Are they not the same thing? I always thought that a fee is a charge is for a private use and a tax for a public use..but how does that figure in with airline charges? Are they not all public uses?) one pays in addition to the cost of the actual airline plane ticket.

Without specifically breaking down those taxes and fees on Jane's ticket I can still illustrate by naming them and by giving you the total cost, to show that they are way out of line with fairness. And every country has almost the same taxes and fees on plane passengers. Like sharks in the water seeing blood, governments attack with these charges because they are often hidden ones. When one nation adds a new one, others also charge it.

Her ticket from New Orleans to Buenos Aires was a total of $1202.20...the ticket costing $773.00 and the strange tax and fees charges by the U.S. and Argentine government totaled $429.20. That means the taxes and fees added another 56% cost to the ticket price. Since Jane and her friend were made to pay $131.00 at the Buenos Aires airport in the name of an Argentine Entrance Tax, and since I thought that had been included already in the original $1202.20 ticket cost, I called the airline to see if Jane had been taxed twice. (she hadn't)
After almost two hours of holding on line and speaking with three agents (the final one was allegedly the financially expert agent). I got a breakdown of the name and amounts of each of the taxes and fees that was collected by the U.S. and Argentine government. Here is the name of each.

* Airport enplanement (not a word, but the airlines use it, so you get it) fee- the charge for using the airport...I guess this proves that nothing in life is free.
* XRIO fee- the agent didn't even know what this is, but she was sure I had to pay it. I don't even want to know what it is.
* U.S. Departure tax- you have to pay to take a vacation outside of the country
* U.S. Re entry tax- unless you defect you pay this every time you go home
* Argentine Entry tax- This one is a big charge, $131.00 to fly into Argentina* Argentine departure tax- Just $29 to leave. I guess they want you to go more than to come.* U.S. Immigration fee- to cover checking your passport when you return to the country* U.S. Customs fee- to check for those foreign plants, fruit and drugs, I guess.* Asset user fee- pays for those airport traffic control towers* Airport service charge- the agent said she didn't know the difference between this and the first fee above. I doubt there is a difference. They both are un needed.* U.S. Segment flight fee- the charge for changing planes in the U.S.* Fuel surcharge- The biggest of the charges at $160.00 Supposedly the cost of fuel for the airlines increased that much since Jane's ticket was purchased.* Security fee- Since 911 the government is charging passengers for having to go though (shoe-lessly) security airports checks at the flight gates* Animal and plant fee- It hurts to even comment on the stupidity of this charge

There may be many more because these were all the agents that I conversed with on the telephone could find or knew about. It all goes to show how we are treated so unfairly when flying. Consumers should be shown all the charges for the item purchased at the time of purchase. Yet they are not. Instead, they get a 'ticket price charge' and an 'additional taxes/fees listing' with no break-down on charges. To find out what the taxes and fees are (good luck, I think few employees of the airlines themselves even know that) just grab your phone and start dialing those airline numbers.

To find out what the charges are it should take you about as long as it does to fly from your home to Timbuktu.