Go! to impose $10 first-bag fee

Remember how you thought you could avoid that interisland checked-bag fee by stuffing all of your items into your one suitcase and your carry-on?

Well, forget it. It's now going to cost you for that first checked bag as well - at least on interisland carrier go!

Mesa Air Group's 2-year-old airline said yesterday that to offset increased fuel costs it would impose a $10 fee for passengers' first checked bag beginning Aug. 10.

But go! said it would provide some financial relief by reducing its second-checked-bag fee, which went into effect yesterday, to $17 from $25. That means if you check in two bags, it will cost you $27 - or $2 more than it would have under go!'s previously announced checked-bag policy.

Go!'s lower second-checked-bag fee matches the $17 second-checked-bag fee that goes into effect yesterday from rival Hawaiian Airlines. Hawaiian said it was studying go!'s decision to charge for first checked bags.

"Fuel costs have more than doubled since we first entered the Hawaiian market," Mesa Chairman and Chief Executive Jonathan Ornstein said. "In this extremely challenging environment, we remain committed to providing the best interisland service at the lowest possible cost and working to provide options instead of raising overall cost of travel."

Go! passengers who are exempt from the first-checked-bag fee are those who purchased their tickets for travel prior to July 10, corporate members, customers traveling on government fares and customers flying on the same reservation as someone with exempt status (except for group bookings of eight or more. Customer checked-in items exempt from the bag fee are child car seats, carriers and strollers; and wheelchairs, walkers and other personal assistive devices.

Go! customers can pay the first-checked-bag fee through go!'s reservations department or at go! ticket counters.