Air Fare Increase May Not Last

Most of the nation’s airlines dropped out of a Continental Airlines-led overall fare increase Monday, opting instead to raise scattered prices in selected markets.

Consumer advocates say it won’t be long before those higher fares drop back to last week’s prices.

Continental announced Friday an across-the-board 3 percent fare increase for leisure travel and 1 percent boost for walk-up tickets. The move quickly was matched by United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and America West but collapsed Sunday when other major carriers, including Northwest Airlines and American Airlines, failed to go along.