Higher fares at LAX?

A new leasing policy at LAX means that airlines will have to pay far more to operate at the airport and according to a Daily Breeze story, passengers will feel the difference. Airport commissioners voted 5-0 to revise the leasing policy, but the airlines are likely to take their case to the courts. The commissioners aren't imposing the higher rates just yet, as they allow the airport and the airlines time to settle their differences (don't hold your breath). LAX's leasing policy hasn't been updated since 2001.

The new policy would put the airlines on the hook for tens of millions more dollars a year. Airline officials said they would likely have to raise ticket prices or cut flights to absorb that kind of hike. LAX officials argued that the airlines would only have to raise ticket prices by a few dollars to cover the additional cost. Even with the higher rates, they said, LAX would remain a cheaper place to land than other big airports in places such as New York, Chicago and San Francisco. But David Anderson, the manager of properties and facilities for Frontier Airlines, said carriers compete on price. "A lot of those low fares are going to go away," he said. "We've already cut our expenses as low as we can go."