American Airlines sues a travel site to crack down on consumers who use this trick to save money

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By DAVID KOENIG
Updated 4:32 PM CDT, August 18, 2023

DALLAS (AP) — American Airlines is suing a travel website that sells tickets that let people save money by exploiting a quirk in airline pricing.

American sued Skiplagged Inc. in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas, this week, accusing the website of deception. It threatened to cancel every ticket that Skiplagged has sold.

In a practice called skiplagging and hidden-city ticketing, travelers book a flight that includes at least one stop, but they leave the plane during a layover. Generally skiplagging is not illegal, but airlines claim that it violates their policies.

Last month, American booted a 17-year-old from a flight and banned him for three years when he tried to use the tactic to fly from Gainesville, Florida, to Charlotte, North Carolina, on a ticket that listed New York City as his destination. For the teen, that was cheaper than booking a flight directly to Charlotte.




Read more: https://apnews.com/article/american-airlines-lawsuit-skiplagging-tickets-905acda8ac5fe302238cefd63ac864e3

[Alice Kramden]

1. Well, if he paid for the flight to NY

and deplaned in Charlotte, I do not see any harm.

[sinkingfeeling]

2. The NY flight was cheaper than the Charlotte one.

[Alice Kramden]

3. Yes,

So he paid to go to NY and deplaned in Charlotte. I don't see anything wrong with doing that.

[sinkingfeeling]

4. He saved money but the airline is delayed in taking off

from Charlotte hunting for the booked passenger. It's against the terms of the ticket (read the fine print) to skip lag.

[Alice Kramden]

5. Thanks I did not know this

[Merlot]

16. Doutful the airline would delay a flight to look for a passenger.

[we can do it]

21. +1

[drray23]

24. they have to.

if a passenger is not on the plane they have to remove his/her checked luggage. it's a security measure. In this instance they had to check if thus guy had checked luggage ( he probably did not) before being able to depart.

[Zeitghost]

76. Why would you check luggage

If you intended to bail during the layover?

[drray23]

77. you would not but the airline still has to make sure

because of potential security issues

[Zeitghost]

78. Their computer system knows who checked luggage

They don't need to do a search.

[Farmer-Rick]

34. Yeah, I've missed flights

They didn't even wait 10 minutes. So, no the flight is not delayed for only one passenger.

Seems to me if they charge less for a flight to New York which is further away, then it's a very bad pricing scheme.

The airlines take way too much liberty with our money and time.

[Marthe48]

51. July 2nd, I flew a regional to Charlotte

I was booked to pick up an AA flight to Bangor, Maine. AA would not confirm I had a seat until I was at the desk at the gate. Several other passengers had the same problem. As I waited to talk to someone, the lady I was waiting with saw a person in an AA uniform. They turned out to be a flight attendent. They said AA assumed 4 or 5 people would miss connecting flights because they didn't know how big the Charlotte airport is and couldn't make it from the regional gates to the national/international gates. My daughter arranged a wheelchair for me and the attendent maneuvered the chair like they were driving at Indy! So I made it, but if I had had to walk, I would've missed the flight. I think that assuming people will miss their connection is a lousy way to book seats.

I had to wait at Charlotte for 6 hours on my way home, and I heard names announced for flights 2 times. I thought how awful that the person missed their flight. But maybe they didn't plan to go further.

It used to be, I'd see airline ads for $99 round trip flights from Columbus or Cleveland, Ohio. I thought that'd be a way I could go see my daughter in Maryland, or maybe go to a beach. But no, the $99 flights were to NYC or LA, never a shorter hop. I don't even look any more.

[wishstar]

73. I and a friend were "late" due to gate change and they didn't delay even to let us on board

Several year ago before having smartphones with aps for notification, we sat at original gate too late until finding out about gate change and we raced to correct gate arriving before departure time.

We arrived 10 minutes before the plane took off but they still refused to let us board. Our luggage was on the plane. So in our case there was no delay for them to wait for us or to remove our luggage which is two of the excuses given to justify airlines crackdown.

[delisen]

25. I still think the problem is the airline pricing policy nt

[Karma13612]

29. The policy is because they know their pricing is generally

Unfair and expensive.

Airlines are bringing this skiplagging practice on themselves because their prices are ridiculous. And I think their policy should be looked at by the FTC. OR commerce or who ever is in charge of defending consumers on unfair pricing.

It reminds me of how illegal music downloading became popular. When prices are way too high for consumers, they find a way to save money. Musicians and airlines need to be paid, but when pricing is outrageous, necessity is the mother of invention.

[Martin68]

59. The only reason the airline is delayed is because they want to penalize the customer for getting

off early so, understandably, they leave without saying goodbye. If you buy a ticket you should have the right to use as much or as little of the services you've paid for as you want. If you buy a season pass for baseball games and miss a few, they can't penalize you.

[Karma13612]

67. There ya go! I would love to see a class action

Lawsuit on this airline policy.

Once again, the airlines is telling the public to just accept exorbitant pricing, all the add on costs, and they treat us like cattle when we are on board, and they double book and cancel flights.

It needs to be pushed back on.

[stopdiggin]

6. I won't defend this practice (I guess cheating is cheating)

But is no one else struck by how utterly ludicrous the underlying mechanics are here? The bizarro world of airlines - where of course a series of flights involving more than one plane, and deplaning and a layover in at least one other airport - will be priced at a significant savings to just stepping off the the short flight, in the exact same aircraft, going directly to the desired location. Because 'pricing metrics' (or some such folderol) It's patently absurd, and borderline crazy!

------- --- --- -------------- -----

[ShazzieB]

8. You're right, it IS crazy.

It's absolutely insane.

[Alexander Of Assyria]

26. Canada has all in flight pricing...no hidden costs...more important to have.

America is so backward when it comes to consumer protections, the corporations have corrupted politicians and this is only one of the many many negative consequences for People.

Solution?

See Canada…always look there first…consumers are actually considered humans.

[oldsoftie]

39. When I book Delta, there are no hidden costs. You pay what the website shows.

Arent ALL the airlines this way?

[PortTack]

13. Me..I'm struck by the maneuvers the airlines put you thru sometimes to get from place to place and

Tickets are really expensive regardless of lay overs or direct flights. I can’t blame anyone for trying to make it more affordable

[quakerboy]

14. I cant think how youd go about proving it

But my experiences lead me to think it seems quite likely to me that the airlines put together a "low" price for a flight with more stops and then raise the price on more direct options, assuming that many will pay the higher price to avoid the hassle.

Id also expect that sometimes its cheaper for them to fill up several low occupancy flights than to add more direct flights.

Probably a few calculations going into these things, Some sensible and others unkind at best.

[mitch96]

28. "(I guess cheating is cheating)" Or as marketing people say

A creative result to finding a cost based solution to a travel situation... Uff, new speak..
I don't see a problem with it.

m

[DJ Porkchop]

7. Give the laggers a chance!

https://skiplagged.com/

[orleans]

9. you would think all this up and down, landing and taking off again

would be more expensive than a direct flight.

seems like a lot of fucking around and a bit of a racket.

but i read the article; talking about being competitive for pricing when all the other airlines are doing the long flights but they can make money on the shorter destinations if only a couple airlines fly there.

whatever!

i think it's weird the 17 yr old was questioned before boarding -- b/c the ticket agent looked at his license and figured he'd just get off the plane in north carolina and stay off once he got home. so they didn't let him fly at all. kid admitted what he was going to do. should have insisted he was going to stay with sick grandma in new york for awhile.

???

[SouthBayDem]

10. The AP is really resorting to Taboola clickbait headlines now?

Or are they trolling?

[jmowreader]

11. I just did a quick search...

4:46 flight on American from Gainesville…

To Charlotte as destination: $255.

Through Charlotte to JFK: $92.

No wonder the airlines are mad.

[oldsoftie]

40. Gainesville to JFK for $92 & people here are saying prices are a ripoff?

Maybe they haven't seen the price of FUEL lately.

How the heck do they make any money on a $92 ticket?

[jmowreader]

52. They DON'T make any money on a $92 ticket!

Here's the Big Secret of the airline industry: Cargo pays the bills. They can pack enough freight into the cargo holds of a 737-800 that they can fly the jet from Charlotte to New York with very few passengers aboard and still operate profitably - and they've got contracts that ensure the hold is full.

On the other hand, you cannot pack enough freight into the cargo holds of an Embraer E-jet - which is what was supposed to get this guy out of Florida if they hadn't figured out what he was doing - to subsidize the cost of his ticket.

I just checked the airline I always fly and it seems that you can't skiplag on that airline.

If I wanted to fly from Spokane to Seattle it would cost $79.
From Seattle to JFK it would cost $259.
Add them together and you get $338.

But if I buy a Spokane-JFK ticket it is $333. However, to save that five bucks I've got to leave Spokane extremely early, so to me it's worth it to pay the extra and spend a night in Seattle. Seattle is fun so to me it's worth it.

[oldsoftie]

61. Those are good prices! We're actually in a GOOD pricing time frame.

Average prices are about 50% lower than 1980

[RocRizzo55]

12. Sounds to me like

Another symptom of late stage capitalism, and the impending collapse.

[oldsoftie]

41. Hardly; people have been doing this for decades.

It only recently made the news.

[DFW]

15. I have no sympathy at all for American Airlines, and wish them only the worst

The last time we took them on a long haul flight, it was a round trip in business class from Frankfurt to Dallas and back.

On the return leg, we were at the check-in counter in Dallas two hours before departure time. Instead of checking us in right away, the agent let us wait right in front of him (the other agents were "busy serving other customers" ) while he "took a phone call" which lasted 90 minutes, and then told us we were too late to check in. He then referred us to an American Airlines supervisor who told us, without even looking at a computer screen, that all other flights to Europe on American and all airlines were full, and we'd have to get a hotel (at our expense) and take the flight the next day. They had overbooked the flight and didn't want to pay compensation. I talked to someone I know who works for AA, as well as one of their pilots, and they said flat out that it was a dirty game that American played to save money. Their whole company knew it, but no one dared say so on the record, or they'd be unemployed the next day.

Anyone that figures out any trick that saves the passenger money and gives less of it to American Airlines is a hero in my book. My outfit is based in Dallas, and we spend many millions with American Airlines every year, with many platinum members. They don't care. They still treat us like shit. I'd bet that Albanian Airlines is better, and I don't even know if there is an Albanian Airlines.

[jvill]

20. Whatever happened to customer service?

All this is is the airlines got caught in their overly complicated pricing games and are trying to use their lawyers - saying it’s against their made up rules - to protect their overpriced offering that REAL competition would drive down.

Zero sympathy.

[DFW]

22. I think this is one reason why airlines like advance purchase, non-refundable fares

Once they have your money, they can do with you what they like. Sometimes, you luck out, and get airline employees who remember they are dealing with other people, but you really have to get lucky. One time, in Paris, there was a delay at security, and I got to the departure gate after the last bus had left for the tarmac where my plane back to Germany was waiting. The agent, who could have closed up and sent me back to the ticket counter, instead called to his dispatcher, told them not to close the doors to the plane, went outside, flagged down the first Air France vehicle that drove by, told the driver to wait, and personally drove me and one other passenger to the plane.

But then, there WAS that day in Dallas where AA left us to rot in the terminal. Not just us, either. There was a family from Bosnia on our flight, trying to get home to see a dying relative. American Airlines just left them there crying on the floor, while their agents were "busy assisting other customers."

[FakeNoose]

49. Since you had already paid-for tickets, they should provide an automatic check-in

Kind of like at the grocery stores where we scan and pack our own purchases, pay by credit card, grab our receipt and walk out the door. It's possible to buy a week's groceries and never interact with a store employee. This suits some people, while others prefer to stand in line and wait for the store employee to do the work.

If American Airlines had an auto check-in line, you could have been issued a boarding pass before they sold your seat to someone else. What the check-in guy did to you was inexcusable and it deserves to be called out. I think our Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg is getting controls in place to stop this kind of thing from happening. Your ticket was paid for, they already had your money in advance, but they continued selling more seats for the same flight.

[bahboo]

50. yes...I'm a frequent flyer and mostly fly Delta...

about once a year I end up having to fly American. Something ALWAYS happens. Now what are the odds of that? Even though the connections are better for me, I would never choose to fly American unless absolutely necessary.

[CaptainTruth]

56. Damn, that's brutal! I assume this was before the days of online check-in?

For the past few (maybe more?) years my wife & I have been able to check-in online (on our phones) 24 hours before the flight for all our domestic & European flights. We LOVE it. Big improvement!

Also, you probably know this, but many years ago I learned that if I'm not getting service at the airport it's better to call the airline. Many times I've had cancelled/missed flights & I headed to the customer service desk & got in line behind 100 other people but I also called the airline & every time I was able to get rebooked on another flight in about 5 minutes & walk away from the line while those other 100 folks stood waiting.

It seems like you travel a lot so I'm sure you already know this, I'm posting it mainly as advice for my DU friends who may not know.



Edit to add: Not sure about your experience with them, but a couple times I've flown Lufthansa to/from Europe & had my itinerary absolutely go down in flames due to circumstances beyond their control, & they were ON TOP of the situation! Once when I arrived in Munich (an unplanned stop on the way to Milan) about 10 hours behind schedule (long painful story, almost everything that possibly could go wrong did go wrong) when I got off the plane they had a representative at the gate looking for me, & they had already rebooked me on the next flight to Milan & they handed me my ticket & gave me directions to the gate. I was floored! No way I could have asked for more.

[DFW]

62. This was in May of 2021. Covid time, no online check-in.

I have NEVER gotten through to American Airlines on the phone. I'm sure someone must know how to do that, but we didn't. When even employees (one is a pilot!) of that airline tell us how awful their customer service policy is, there is probably something behind it.

Lufthansa USED to have absolutely horrible customer service. So did Air France. Air France woke up first, so I switched to them. I used to be top tier frequent flyer with Lufthansa decades ago, and got treated like crap just once too often. When they sent me a form letter reminding me that my elite status was in danger of expiring, I sent them a long letter detailing why it was not only in danger of expiring, but was dying a deliberately intended death. I surprisingly got a long detailed letter from a higher up at LH, saying that my letter had made the rounds with senior management, and it had caused serious concern. They said they would make serious inquiries as to just what their frequent travelers thought was lacking, and try to address it all. It seems they might have improved since I abandoned them.

Several years ago, there was a passenger poaching war on between Lufthansa and Air France. If you flew business class from Germany to North America, you could save about 50% by flying on Air France and changing planes in Paris. The same rang true the other way. If you flew to North America from France, but used Lufthansa, changing in either Frankfurt or Munich, you could save 50% over what the price was on Air France departing from Paris. This doesn't seem to be the case any more, but I don't know for sure. I am now platinum for life on Air France-KLM(-Delta), so I always take them if I have a choice, especially now that Air France finally flies to Dallas. For me, the cruelest effect of Covid was that Delta eliminated their nonstop between Atlanta and Düsseldorf. This route has just been reinstated. When I fly home next Saturday, I will fly from Dulles down to Atlanta, have some of the great food offered in the Delta lounge in the terminal where the overseas flights leave from, and then get on the plane and arrive 16 minutes from my house at the Düsseldorf airport. Lufthansa has practically abandoned nonstop routes between Düsseldorf and North America, preferring to make everyone change in either Frankfurt or Munich. Since Frankfurt and Munich are farther east than Düsseldorf, I'd have to go extra mileage to change planes there. I prefer doing it in Paris or Amsterdam.

[CaptainTruth]

69. It sounds like you have it worked out! And you know it's not easy.

I understand. I've spent so much time on planes & flown all around the world, it can be challenging to figure out what works best.

Usually I felt like I was in reasonably good hands, exept for Air China domestic flights to remote parts of the country where the only other option was a 6-hour boat ride up a river followed by 4-5 hours bouncing on a dirt road in the middle of nowhere, which yes, I did once.

That was the only time in all my travels our corporate accounting department called me to confirm the numbers on my expense report were correct, & yes, the "all you can eat dumpling breakfast" was $0.50, at the exchange rate I got from the guy on the street corner, because if you're smart you know the locals pay a significant premium for US$ so you don't use banks to exchange currency there.

Oh the memories!

[DFW]

71. Your China adventrure sounds like it ought to be in the Sunday NYT travel section.

I have never been to Mainland China. My path just never led me there. My wife and my job led me to Europe, and that has been mostly where I have stayed. I speak no Asian languages--at least, not enough to have an extended conversation--and I do speak nine European languages (ten, if you count Schwyzerdüütsch/Alemannic). So I went where logic (and a beautiful tall blonde German woman) led me.

[bucolic_frolic]

17. They're creating a customer relations problem because they have a pricing problem

Their fares make no sense to the public, or to logic.

[Vinca]

18. For the life of me I can't figure out why this should be illegal. If you pay for the ticket and opt

to have an empty seat complete the flight, the seat is still paid for. They should rethink their pricing.

[DFW]

23. One time, many decades ago, I was with a friend from Mississippi

We both had to travel from Boston to Chattanooga. He remarked that people in the know who had only hand luggage, and were flying from Boston or New York to Atlanta could fly cheaper by booking through to Chattanooga, but getting off in Atlanta. Since Chattanooga was north of Atlanta, and the fare was based on distance, it was cheaper, even though you always had to change in Atlanta (in the South, you ALWAYS have to change in Atlanta). Delta was aware of this, but never did anything about it, as it wasn't worth the aggravation.

By the way, it is common knowledge among us "Suthenuz" that when you die and go to heaven, you STILL have to change in Atlanta.

[Vinca]

37. I just had a flashback to the first time I was in the Atlanta airport. It was so long ago that it's

where I saw my first jumbo jet. Weird how things pop out of the back of your mind like that. Must be an old age thing.

[IronLionZion]

19. Always be hostile to one's own customers

instead of lowering prices or some other solution.

[Oopsie Daisy]

27. Security Concerns:

Security Concerns: Skiplagging can raise security concerns for airlines. If a passenger is not present on a flight but their luggage is, it can trigger security protocols and potentially cause delays or disruptions.

If you check your luggage through to the final destination but disembark at the layover point, there is a chance that your bags will continue to the final destination without you. Retrieving your bags mid-journey can be challenging and may result in logistical difficulties.

[Karma13612]

30. With the money you save on skiplagging,

Just buy the few clothes you need when you get to your destination. Just take a carryon bag.

This policy they have against skiplagging is of their own making. Charging obscenely more for direct flights is usury in my book.

[Oopsie Daisy]

32. I figure they charge "obscenely" less for the highly competitive routes.

Otherwise they risk getting nothing at all and losing passengers to competitors. Yes, policies are of their own making and they're trying to maximize profits on the less competitive routes/destinations. It doesn't benefit EVERY passenger equally, but I guess that's how it goes.

I suppose it's possible that the airlines could become regulated again. Maybe that would help to make things more equitable (more expensive?) who knows? I guess that remains to be seen.

Some argue that removing airline regulation encourages innovation and competition, leading to lower airfares and increased options for travelers. And that it allows airlines to operate more efficiently, respond to market demands, and offer tailored services. Market forces, rather than government intervention, are better suited to drive the growth and improvement of the airline industry.

But others counter with the argument that airline regulation is crucial for ensuring passenger safety, fair pricing, and maintaining healthy competition. Also, they say that it protects consumers from predatory practices, promotes efficient operations, and prevents monopolistic behavior. Presumably, by reinstating airline regulation, we can safeguard the interests of travelers and foster a more equitable and reliable aviation industry.

[stopdiggin]

31. one can assume that almost no one

would deliberately check luggage to a destination they have no intention of going to. And that would go double for the (skip fare) individual that is trying to shave dollars.

[Oopsie Daisy]

33. One could.

[Karma13612]

54. A terrorist would check luggage and then get off early before the explosive

Was due to detonate.

So, plane explodes and terrorist is sipping tea at the last stop.

🤷‍♀️

People are forced to skiplag because the ticket pricing is price gouging.

[stopdiggin]

60. which is why airlines must check on no shows (as has been noted

a couple times up-string). But the skip-lag passenger, attempting to reduce his fare (as is the subject of this post) - has absolutely no incentive to check luggage that he will never see again (and would most often have to pay an additional price for). It just simply doesn't make any sense.

[Hotler]

35. How many times has the tax payer bailed out the airlines?

Isn't that what the yellow cord above the seat is for? To let the pilot know you're getting off at the next stop.

[erronis]

46. Cute. Good use of mixed memes. I always pull that cord when I'm going to vomit.

Or want another scotch? But yes, the taxpayers are unwitting owners of lots of failed enterprises.

I wonder if D.B. Cooper pulled that cord?

[Farmer-Rick]

36. Oh, boo hoo the airlines scam as much out of you as they can

And act like they are doing you a favor.
When flying to Hartford, I carefully booked times and layovers to coincide with some relatives' travel. And paid a bit more to avoid excessive layovers and waits.

Don't you know, 2 weeks before the flight, Delta changed my times and I got stuck with a 3 hour layover in Atlanta and arriving 4 hours too early to meet my relatives. And the hours they gave me were the cheaper flights but I had paid extra for the more timely flights that they did not give me. It a scam.

[oldsoftie]

38. Someone please enlighten me; how do you get BACK home?

If I book JAX to NY but get off in Charlotte, my ticket has me boarding to go home in NY not Charlotte.
How do I get back to JAX?

[cbabe]

44. Bus.

[muriel_volestrangler]

45. In this case, home was Charlotte

They noticed in Gainesville he had an NC driver's license, and stopped him from boarding the plane at all, until he bought a standard ticket to Charlotte. And then banned him for 3 years. In general, it seems people buy one-way tickets to do this.

[SWBTATTReg]

42. Not the only industry that has screwy pricing (on certain flights), due to flukes, some long-haul

trips include segments (short-haul) where passengers can get off and save money (like the above).

Before when it was an issue, the prices paid on some long-distance calls vs. instate calls were the same way. Instate calls (the long distance calls instate) were more expensive than the interstate calls. Main reason was that Public Service Commissions allowed this pricing discrepancy to exist.

Wonder how many other industries have these weird pricing models? Perhaps services such as Greyhound, etc.?

[mopinko]

48. i'm old enough to remember

when arthur c clarke said that in the future there would be no such thing as a long distance phone call. ppl said he was nuts. couldnt believe the phone companies would let go of the extra dough.

[SWBTATTReg]

53. Really! And when the Internet came roaring in, the phone company (where I worked), couldn't let

go of the fact that with these data calls, you really don't know where the call truly originated or terminated (gets into a FEP (Front End Processor)), you couldn't charge the normal rate for such calls.

Distance-insensitive type of calls. They freaked out (I was in data processing at the time, and we were bringing in a data ntwk (vs. a voice network)).

[MorbidButterflyTat]

65. "...arthur c clarke said

that in the future there would be no such thing as a long distance phone call. ..couldnt believe the phone companies would let go of the extra dough."

Did they, tho? I'm old enough to remember when a monthly phone bill was 25 or 30 bucks. And, my parents had to pay a monthly rental fee for the phone!

I wonder how comparable AT&T and other phone companies pricing is now. You sometimes get offered a "free" phone as long as you commit to being price gouged for years and if you break the contract, it's gonna cost you.

Clarke was right. They never let go of extra dough, and they get a heck of a lot more now.

[Ursus Rex]

75. Digital vs analog makes a HUGE difference

I worked for telcos for ~15 years. This is tremendously over-generalized, but "Analog" (i.e., POTS, copper landlines, etc) are regulated as utilities, whereas "digital" (i.e., VOIP, fiber, etc) are not regulated to the same extent. AT&T still has a monopoly on certain types of phone infrastructure but they must maintain a certain level of service, and because it's physical, it requires more workers with very specific skills (who are also unionized), field service, etc. I grew up with storms, etc., that would take out power and I kept an actual old-fashioned (copper-based) landline but AT&T more and more frequently raised prices until it was like $150/month for basic service (which, true, these days includes caller ID and stuff that didn't exist in 1975 for the vast majority of customers). The margins on that are far lower than with cell phones/VOIP, so AT&T uses price pressure to drive people to the cell/digital solution.

Just my slightly-jaundiced take.

[flying_wahini]

47. Some airlines will let you layover for a day or two in any connecting city.

I did it on Turkish airlines; laid over for 2 nights in Istanbul on my way to Prague.

[CaptainTruth]

55. I remember when folks would "nest" flights to save money.

In my younger life I worked a job that required a lot of travel, domestic & international, for my coworkers & I, & we would sometimes save money by "nesting" tickets when we had to make multiple trips to the same location over a few months.

Basically it involves buying tickets for 2 round trips with dates that overlap, then using a ticket from the first round-trip & a ticket from the second round-trip for the first trip, then using a ticket from the second round-trip & the first round-trip for the second trip.

It's hard to explain, but you could save money. For example, at the time business class (remember that???) tickets for flights to the US originating in Europe were usually cheaper than business class tickets for flights originating in the US going to Europe. So if, for example, you knew you were going to make 2 trips to London (where our UK office was located) you could book one flight US>UK>US & another flight UK>US>UK (cheaper) with overlapping ("nested&quot dates, & mix up the tickets to save money.

If you Google "nested airline tickets" you'll find better explanations than I can give:

https://www.google.com/search?q=nested+airline+tickets]

[tavernier]

57. Two days ago my daughter slept on the airport floor

all night because AA couldn’t locate a pilot for her 9 pm flight which was canceled at midnight. She had given up her seat that morning on an overbooked flight. No good deed goes unpunished.

I hope they lose their lawsuit.

[Martin68]

58. Frankly if the airline sells you a ticket, I think you have the right to get off during a stop on

Last edited Sun Aug 20, 2023, 05:31 PM - Edit history (1)

the way to the final destination. Like if you buy a movie ticket you can't walk out in the middle? If you book hotel you can't leave early?

[Karma13612]

63. Agree.

Their anti-skiplagging policy is not a law. They are manipulating ticket prices and price gouging.

The consumer protection agency (FTC????) should be all over this crap.

What happens if you actually get off the plane and just miss getting back on! How can they prove your intent and have the audacity to charge you or ban you from flying with them again????

It’s ridiculous!

[Martin68]

64. Given the bad behavior and poor service the airline industry offers customers,

I think this is totally fair. Lower rates and improved service is all we ask.

[Karma13612]

66. Agree 100% eom

[róisín_dubh]

68. I've done this once or twice...

Though not intentionally. In both instances, my continuing flights were so delayed that it would’ve been much longer to sit and wait than to get a one-way car rental and drive home. Both times were after long trans-Atlantic flights and I did not have the bandwidth to sit in the airport.
As I’d already collected my luggage for transfer, it wasn’t a huge problem.

[Xolodno]

70. Other airlines have tried to sue them and lost.

I'm sure they are using a complex algorithm which results in inefficiencies.

Another tip, use incognito mode when looking at airfare. It used to be speculated that travel sites and airlines were tracking you to edge you into purchasing. Forgot where I read, but for some, it was confirmed.

[jgmiller]

72. Years ago I tried to do it for a reasonable reason and learned something

We were flying from LAX to Erie, PA through Cleveland. When we got to Cleveland a family member didn't want to get on the very small plane for the final leg. Since we needed to rent a car anyway and Erie is a 90 minute drive I went to the counter to get our luggage off before it was transferred to the smaller plane.

The agent told us that if we did this she would have to cancel our return flight and charge us much higher fee for the return from Cleveland direct to LAX. She told me the reason for this was that the government subsidized flights to smaller airports and they needed to recoup the money for the missing fares on the smaller plane.

I'm not sure if that's still the case but in a twisted way it made sense.

[harun]

74. Good point, helped me learn something too

ChatGPT says about the subsidies:

Yes, many governments around the world have implemented subsidies or financial support programs to encourage flights to smaller airports, especially in rural or less populated areas. These subsidies are often aimed at maintaining essential air connectivity, promoting regional development, and boosting local economies.

These subsidies can take various forms, such as:

1. **Route Subsidies * Governments may provide financial incentives to airlines to operate specific routes between larger airports and smaller regional airports that might not be economically viable otherwise.

2. **Airport Infrastructure Funding * Governments may allocate funds to upgrade or maintain the infrastructure of smaller airports, making them more attractive to airlines.

3. **Reduced Fees and Charges * Governments may lower landing fees, fuel taxes, or other charges for airlines operating at smaller airports, making it more cost-effective for them to provide service.

4. **Guaranteed Revenue Programs * In some cases, governments may guarantee a certain level of revenue to airlines operating at smaller airports, reducing the financial risk associated with low passenger numbers.

5. **Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) * Governments might enter into partnerships with private companies to invest in and operate smaller airports, with the aim of improving services and increasing air traffic.

6. **Community Air Services * In remote or isolated regions, governments might directly fund air services as a crucial means of transportation for residents, medical needs, and other essential services.

These subsidies can vary widely depending on the country, the specific region, and the aviation policies in place. They can help maintain crucial air connections to underserved areas and stimulate economic activity by facilitating travel and trade. However, these programs also have to be carefully managed to ensure they achieve their intended goals efficiently and transparently.