Why stairs reflect ULCC economics

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Frontier Airlines has a new idea, and… yeah, it's a lot. This week, RIchard is back and they are joined again by Julian to unpack Frontier's proposal to board planes using stairs, what that says about ultra-low-cost carrier economics, and why the airline experience keeps drifting further away from what passengers actually want.

From there, the conversation turns to fees — bag fees, seat fees, priority fees — and a bigger question: what if airlines went in a completely different direction instead of charging for checked bags? The group also dives into United's premium seat expansion plans, whether transcon flying is getting better or worse, and how airlines keep optimizing everything except the customer experience.

✈️ What We Cover in This Episode

✈️ Frontier's latest boarding idea

• Why Frontier wants to use stairs instead of jet bridges

• What this says about ULCC cost structures

• What do the guys think about this idea?

✈️ The real problem with airline fees

• How bag fees shape passenger behavior

• Why airlines are addicted to à-la-carte pricing

• Whether a simpler pricing model could actually work

✈️ What if airlines tried something different?

• Bundled pricing vs unbundled chaos

• Lessons airlines refuse to learn

• Why customer goodwill still matters

✈️ United's premium seat push

• More premium seats, fewer regular ones

• What this means for transcon flyers

• Paying more for a worse experience

✈️ Airline optimization gone too far

• Boarding, seating, and operational tradeoffs

• Why airlines keep chasing the wrong metrics

• The widening gap between airline math and passenger reality

Timestamps:

0:45 – Welcome back & setting the stage

3:12 – Frontier's stair-boarding idea explained

7:18 – Why this tells you everything about ULCC economics

11:42 – Bag fees and unintended passenger behavior

16:05 – What if airlines charged for carry-on bags instead?

21:30 – Why airlines won't give up fee revenue

25:44 – United's premium seat expansion plans

30:18 – Transcon flying: better seats, worse value

34:52 – Airline optimization vs passenger experience

Scroll down for timestamps and details.

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