Are this airline’s cheap fares worth it?

As leisure travel season ramps up, you may see tantalizing low fares on Spirit Air. But you have to know what you’re buying before you get in over your head!

Spirit Air has ranked among the worst airlines in the world, according to an analysis of data from SkyTrax. In fact, they were the only U.S. airline to make the list!

They’re right down there with relative unknowns like Tajik Air, Rossiya, Merpati Nusantara, Air Koryo, Ukraine International, and Turkmenistan Airlines — many of them fleets that fly the skies over the former Soviet Union.

The criteria the airlines were graded on included standard of customer support service, cabin cleanliness, responding to requests, enthusiasm/attitude, and explanations for add-on charges and baggage, according to Consumerist.com.

So you may get the lowest fares imaginable on Spirit, but you’ll also get customer service to match it. As I said, you’ve got to know what you’re buying when you fly Spirit Air.

Meanwhile, a Harris survey asked would you rather sit next to a screaming baby on a flight or an adult who smells? People said they would rather sit next to the baby than a stinky adult by a 2:1 margin!

Another survey question asked people what they would be willing to pay extra for on a flight. The most common response was more leg room if a flight is 3 hours or longer.

I am guilty as charged in that respect. I recall taking a flight from the mainland to Hawaii with my wife. We gladly paid $49 each to be seated by a door that gave us 5 extra feet of leg room. It made a coach seat better than first class…and yes, it was worth it!