11.   Airlines that have rights at Narita have been able to charge relatively high fares because they face limited competition.

12.   Business travelers require frequent flights, pay high fares and often fly on short notice, making them lucrative customers for airlines that can offer frequency and flexibility.

13.   But it was sometimes difficult to separate legitimate air fares from suspiciously high fares, said the investigator, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

14.   Companies tolerated the high fares when the economy was strong.

15.   Delta, after announcing relatively high Olympic fares last fall, recently began discounting seats.

16.   Eight years of economic growth has filled airplanes to near capacity, even as consumers complain about high fares.

17.   Few have expanded to new routes, leaving travelers in many cases with a choice between carriers with the same high fares.

18.   For them, air travel is already a grim reality of high fares, interminable check-in lines, overcrowded planes, endless delays and stingy in-flight meals.

19.   It has meant lost baggage, abrupt changes in flight times, poor on-board service and high fares.

20.   Moreover, amid mounting criticism of high fares, at last count five bills have been filed in Congress aimed at giving small carriers more protection from anticompetitive behavior.