My friend Kate sent this to me, as she was also charged out the wazoo for her baggage by Ryan Air on our recent trip.

Glad to know I'm not the only one this has happened to, and considering the charges he listed, we got off pretty freaking easy.

TODAY Travel Editor Peter Greenberg warns of excessive baggage fees

And he's a travel editor. I suddenly don't feel quite so bad about not knowing. about the policies.

Many of you read about my baggage nightmare in flying Ryan Air from Dublin to Edinburgh. At the time of booking, we had several options from Aer Lingus, Ryan, BMI and British Airways, but we selected Ryan air based on the fact that it was a couple of dollars cheaper.

Had we known their policy, we would have clearly paid the extra 10 bucks to fly BMI, or another relatively sane company. Aer Lingus has the same policy, by the way.

I spent about 100 dollars for the ticket. I spent 200 Euros just for the bags. Thats almost $350 USD.

Some may shake their heads and say well that's Europe for you, but its not. The same policies are headed our way.

I got this email from US Airways this morning:

Today, US Airways announced a change to our baggage policy. Beginning May 5, 2008, we’ll charge $25 for a second checked bag. The new fee applies to travel on or after May 5 for tickets purchased on or after February 26, 2008.

We’re making these changes to offset record fuel prices and rising airline related expenses. We simply must make changes to the way we do business to provide all of you with the high level of service that you’ve come to expect from US Airways. Also, we’re doing all we can to keep fares low. With this policy change, we’re able to give you the choice to avoid the fee and pack fewer items. With fewer bags to process, we save both money and fuel and can pass that savings on to you.

Dividend Miles Preferred members are exempt from the fee, and we’re also waiving the fee for:

* Confirmed First Class and Envoy passengers
* Passengers with Star Alliance Silver or Gold status
* Active military personnel in uniform and with ID
* Unaccompanied minors
* Passengers checking personal assistive devices

United is implementing a similar policy:

How much is the service fee for checking a second bag?
The fee is $25.00 for a second checked bag, per person, for each one-way trip. A one-way trip is travel from an origin airport to a destination airport, regardless of the number of stops on the way, provided the luggage is checked to the customer’s final destination.

They also allow an exemption for Mileage Plus Premier members (defined as 1K, Premier Executive, Premier and Premier Associate), Star Alliance Gold and Silver and Business and First Class.

Luckily, I fly enough on United that I'm a Premier member, and this is as good a time as any to mention that most airlines frequent flyer clubs are free to sign up for, and do not require you to hold their credit card. Most of them also have marketing preferences that will prevent you from getting spam email or snail mail.

Either that, or just take a huge bag as it now costs less to take a huge bag that weighs just under 50 lbs than it does to take 2 bags that weigh 25 lbs each. So much for saving the weight for fuel.

Where is this all going? If we're not careful, we're going to end up with airlines that take the route of Ryan Air. It can't hurt if you are a frequent flyer member, especially if you're a premier gold or silver, to call the airline and tell them that their policy is heading down a dangerous path.

Just one traveler's opinion.