Earlier this month, I did a blog entry looking at how the airline business was going to the dogs. The combination of the global financial crunch and swine flu will cost them at least $9 billion this year.

So what's their answer? Screw passengers and staff.

First, we have the report that British Airways is demanding its staff work for a month without pay. That's gone down like a brick parachute with the union.

As if that's not bad enough, the Miami Herald tells us that they are making passengers pay extra. But instead of raising fare, they're making them pay fees on fees. So if you fly US Airways or United, you have to $5 extra if you pay baggage fees at the airport instead of online. So is this just a strategy to drive customers online and wipe out airport staff? Not quite, when you consider that Allegiant Air now charges a $13.50 "convenience fee" for online purchases. Then you have Ryanair. It charges passengers a $6.75 check in fee for passengers doing it online and double for those who pay at the airport.

This is one of the worst examples of bone-headed strategy. Airlines should be doing everything possible to attract more passengers. All they're doing is putting people off. In this economic climate, it doesn't take much to make prospective customer think twice and then delay the purchase until things pick up again.