You are already used to checking in and printing boarding passes yourself. Airlines continue shifting their work to passengers. A growing number of airlines also want you to tag your bag yourself.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) runs the so-called Fast Travel Project promoting passengers to deliver their baggage tagged and ready for acceptance by a check-in agent.

 Most likely, the airlines will not abolish the checked baggage fees. Thus, you are going to pay for the right to do the airline’s work.

Airlines have been facing serious disruptions caused by the Icelandic volcano’s eruption. Normally, airlines will fly those who have booked ahead, while they will make separate arrangements to rescue stranded passengers.

By doing so, they have one group of frustrated customers. If they would bump travelers who have booked ahead and give their seats to stranded passengers, the airlines will have two groups of frustrated customers.

I flew an EU airline and was stranded in the USA. The airline told me that I am not entitled to hotel and food under European Union regulations. Moreover, I would have to pay extra to fly back home. Later they told me to keep my hotel bills as they might reimburse me up to a maximum of $150 per day. What are my rights?
Thomas Walder

Airline Passenger Guru’s answer:

The UK and the Netherlands asked Iceland for cash, but what they got was ash. Is the unprecedented grounding of European air traffic after an Icelandic volcano’s eruption an overreaction or are the safety concerns realistic? Different opinions have been expressed.

"It is embarrassing and a mess," said Giovanni Bisignani, secretary-general of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the airline industry’s mouthpiece.

Airlines have increasingly introduced a variety of fees. Nowadays, you may be paying fees for headphones, blankets, food, drinks, making a reservation, changing a reservation, checking a bag, etc.

Advices about the best seat on the plane abound. However, they often overlook that individuals have different preferences. For example, women tend to prefer window seats, whereas men tend to prefer aisle seats.

You need to determine your personal preference before booking a seat. Bulkhead seats - located at the front of each section of the plane - offer less legroom as they face a wall. On the other hand, however, you have no reclining seat in front of you. What do you prefer?

Do you have a service animal and are you going to fly? The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has rules for that. You need to inform the security officer at the airport that the animal accompanying you is a service animal and not a pet.

The animal may be a dog or a monkey. In both cases you need to control the service animal while the officer conducts the inspection.

Since service monkeys will likely draw attention, the officer will escort the handler to the physical inspection area where a table is available for the monkey to sit on.

Do you routinely choose Continental Airlines for the free food? Then you need to reconsider your decision. Continental has announced it will abolish its free-food model on domestic routes in the fall 2010.

As the “free” food is included in the fare, Continental’s move is in effect a fare increase. You get less value for the same money.

Continental sells the reduction of in-flight service levels as follows:
“We will introduce a variety of high quality, healthy food choices for purchase in economy class. This change reflects today's market and customer preferences". Thus, the customer asked for it.

A passenger purchases a ticket Amsterdam-Zurich-Miami at Swiss International Airlines. De ticket conditions permit an upgrade to business class on the flight Zurich-Miami with Miles & More miles.

When he calls Swiss, the agent tells him that he needs to pay €195 ($263) 

You bought a ticket and a couple of days later a strike is looming at your airline. What do you do? You can call the airline, but most likely the airline will tell you it is operating as usual.

Once the strike begins and service is disrupted, the airline can no longer deny that business is not as usual. What are your options? Actually, you are at the mercy of the airline, but usually airlines will try to get you at your destination.

Pricing in the airline industry has profoundly changed:

1. Many airlines have abolished the requirement of a Saturday night for a low fare, although some replaced it with a minimum stay requirement.

2. Last minute deals used to be better, but this is now an exception rather than the rule, although good last minute deals still occur once in a while. At low-cost airlines you need to book well in advance to get a low fare. Advance purchases are often also the best bets at network airlines.

You do not want to be squeezed in economy class, so you are weighing your options for an upgrade. What are your chances? It depends to which group of travelers you belong.

An upgrade is rare for regular travelers. The bottom line is that you will not get an upgrade if your airfare does not entitle you to it.

However, top tier members of a frequent flyer program and passengers traveling on a full fare economy class ticket enjoy better chances.

A journalist of the Dutch TV channel SBS6 has demonstrated that you can board a plane at Amsterdam airport with explosive liquids in your bag. If you travel to a non-Schengen country you can buy tax free liquor past passport control, but before the security check and leave the area.

This is what the journalist did. Outside the terminal he exchanged the bottle’s content for a fake explosive. Next, he went to the tax free shop, paid for the bottle and took it wrapped and sealed through the security check.

If terrorists aim at reducing civil liberties and the right of privacy, they have been very successful. Former US president Bush surrendered very soon. Elected on the slogan “I do not believe in big government”, he created an enormous Big Brother bureaucracy.

He reduced civil liberties and privacy rights and transformed the USA in a country where big surveillance programs, eavesdropping, interception of mail and email, etc. are daily practice.

Whole-body imaging machines at airports illustrate the loss of privacy. Airline passengers are required to submit to scanners and appear naked before security officials.

Passengers who refuse a full body scan will be barred from boarding their flights. Manchester airport in the UK confirmed on March 3, 2010 that two women were denied boarding because they declined the scan. One refused for religious and the other for medical reasons.

The US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) asserts that the scanners emit less radiation than a cell phone and that they generate robotic images of passengers.

A travel agent in Washington, DC, tells about three of his experiences with politicians among his customers:

1. A US Senator asks a question about the documents he needs in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion about passports, the agent reminds him that he needs a visa. "I have been to China several times and I never had to have one of those," responded the Senator.

The agent double checks and tells him his stay requires a visa. The Senator replies: "Look, I have been to China four times and every time they have accepted my American Express."