By: Mary Schlangenstein

UAL Corp.'s United Airlines, the world's No. 2 carrier by traffic, will boost income by charging some passengers $25 to check a second piece of luggage.

United, the first major U.S. airline to announce such a policy, said today it expects $100 million in savings and new revenue from the change. The fee applies to travelers with cheaper tickets who aren't among United's most frequent fliers.

United and other airlines are trying to offset a 50 percent jump in jet-fuel prices over the past 12 months. Some, such as Chicago-based United and American Airlines, are studying ways to charge for non-ticket services, allowing carriers to collect more money without raising fares higher than competitors.

``Others will watch and see how it works for United,'' said Daniel Kasper, a managing director of consulting group LECG Corp., in a telephone interview from Cambridge, Massachusetts. ``Their response will determine whether it sticks.''

Spokesmen for American parent AMR Corp., Delta Air Lines Inc., Continental Airlines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp. declined to comment on whether they're considering a similar fee. A US Airways Group Inc. spokesman said the carrier doesn't plan to follow United's move.

Some discount airlines such as Ryanair Holdings PLC, Europe's largest budget carrier, charge to check any bags. Southwest Airlines Co., the world's biggest low-fare carrier, began assessing $25 for a third checked bag on Jan. 29.

One-Bag Travelers

``Our customer research shows that only about one in four customers check a second bag,'' Executive Vice President John Tague said in today's statement. Restricting some passengers to just one free bag ``enables us to offer competitive fares to everyone.''

UAL fell $2.56, or 6.2 percent, to $38.58 at 4 p.m. New York time in Nasdaq Stock Market composite trading. That was the biggest drop since Jan. 8, according to Bloomberg data.

Moves like United's put responsibility on passengers whose weight and space needs make them more expensive to fly, Kasper said. Still, the move may backfire should customers opt for rivals that don't charge for two bags, or if they try to cram more into carry-on luggage, he said.

United's charge will apply to customers who buy nonrefundable domestic economy tickets and don't have at least ``premier'' status in United's frequent-flier program or ``silver'' status in the Star Alliance. United's 18 partners in the marketing network include US Airways, Air Canada, Germany's Deutsche Lufthansa AG, Air New Zealand, Singapore Airlines, SAS Group and Air China.

United requires annual flying of 25,000 miles or 30 travel segments for ``premier'' status, according to its Web site.

The new policy takes effect May 5 on flights within the U.S., Canada and parts of the Caribbean. It applies to ticket purchases starting today. For all customers, the charge to check as many as four additional bags will be $100 each, the airline said. Previous charges ranged from $85 to $125 per bag.

American is the biggest carrier by passenger traffic.

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