Delta Backs Down On Soldiers' Baggage Fees

Delta, facing a firestorm of bad publicity after hitting soldiers returning from Afghanistan with excess baggage charges, is changing its policy on military baggage. Military personnel traveling on orders will now be able to check four bags free of charge, according to the airline's blog. A YouTube video of a group of soldiers complaining about being charged $200 for a fourth bag received more than 200,000 hits yesterday.

Airline officials say they have apologized to the soldiers involved. Delta policies should have ensured the situation never arose in the first place, complains a manager for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. "Having redeployed from a war zone myself, paying that kind of money is just really the least of their worries," he tells the Baltimore Sun. "The government will reimburse them, but they shouldn't have to go through that process to begin with."