Businesses want airlines to detail fees

McDonald's Corp., Ingersoll-Rand Plc and Goodrich Corp. travel managers joined almost 290 companies in urging broader disclosure of airline fees for bags, seat assignments or changing tickets, a travel group said.

"Without these data we cannot effectively manage our travel," the managers and travel agents said in a letter to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood released by the Business Travel Coalition. "Our travelers are often surprised to find hidden fees."

The coalition, based in Radnor, Pa., has been collecting signatures for the letter, which it plans to deliver to LaHood on Sept. 20, Chairman Kevin Mitchell said today in an interview. He provided the letter in an e-mail.

The letter is aimed at encouraging LaHood to require carriers led by Delta Air Lines Inc. and AMR Corp.'s American Airlines to provide fee information along with route and fare schedules now supplied to travel agents.