Consumer advocates call the practice deceptive.
By press time on Thursday, federal authorities were questioning the unusual way in which the carriers imposed it. This surcharge may be excluded from the rate quotes that pop up first on travel agents' computer reservations systems used to compare rates. Instead, it may show up after the booking is made, along with airport facilities fees and other government levies. Ed Perkins, ombudsman for the American Society of Travel Agents and longtime airline industry watchdog, immediately howled with outrage. Instead, American and United soon joined Continental, with the same effective date.