Airline baggage fee for skis?

Do airlines now charge baggage fees for skis? International travel on American Airlines allows two free 50lb bags, but it sounds like skis are not included in that free allowance. Can anyone describe their recent (2014) US and international air travel costs with skis? Thanks.

Check the airlines height/width/length info Silas. I'm sure ski's probably fall into the not normal category and will probably not be allowed for free.

Or you could call customer service too, probably the fastest and most accurate way.

I think Virgin Atlantic might be the only airline which allows odd-sized sporting equipment free of additional fees.

Southwest is the best I have found for domestic flights. Skis just count as one of your free pieces of luggage.

From the AA.com website ...

SKIS: WATER OR SNOW / SNOWBOARDS
Allowance/Requirements
See below for travel to, through or from Brazil.*

One pair of skis/snowboard and one bag containing a pair of ski /board boots only

Cost
One pair of skis/snowboard and one boot bag containing only boots/bindings will be treated as a single item with the applicable checked bag charge.
Boot bag must not exceed 45 linear inches (length + width + height) and must contain only boots/bindings. Boot bags that contain other articles will be subject to the excess baggage charge for a single piece.
Maximum Weight and Size
One pair of skis/snowboard up to 126 inches and one boot bag containing boots/bindings only and not to exceed 45 dimensional inches (length + width + height)

Additional Information
Lighters or torches for applying ski wax are considered dangerous goods and are not allowed in checked or carry-on baggage
*For travel to, through or from Brazil

Once your free bag allowance is exceeded, ski equipment (snow or aquatic) is 33% of Brazil’s excess bag (4+) charge:

For tickets purchased before April 8, 2014: $24.75.
For tickets purchased on or after April 8, 2014: $28.05.

Thanks for the chapters and verses. It all seems to be subject to onsite agent interpretation. I was hoping to learn of individual actual experience. Please pm if you'd rather not post.

International, don't know.
(Well, not since our Chamonix & Paris honeymoon in 2001...)

Domestic, on all the major airlines, especially to PDX & SEA, lots of experience!

1. A ski bag counts as a single normal piece of luggage, even though its dimensions are of course far different from a normal piece of luggage. Definitely do go crazy trying to stuff as much other gear in there, up to the 50-lb limit. This has been unchanged now for many many years.

2. The nightmare stories you hear almost always come from people really trying to bend the rule that ski gear of skis + poles + boots = one "piece" of luggage, even if bagged separately. This is supposed to apply though to a bag carrying only a pair of skis and poles, and another bag carrying boots. It doesn't mean that you can count a 49.99-lb ski bag plus a 49.99-lb boot bag as a single piece of luggage.

3. Although all the major airlines are fine with a 49.99-lb "ski" bag counting against the normal first bag allowance, they're all fairly pricey now for that first bag, and even more so for the second bag. SW is the sole holdout: both bags are still free! Otherwise, remember to pay for your bag on-line when you check-in for a significant discount over paying at the airport. Frequent flyer credit cards also often have savings, sometimes even a free first bag.