How to Tell If You’re Getting Ripped Off on Airfare
Carly Zinderman March 24, 2018
Expect a short flight to be cheaper than a long one? That might not be the case. The contributing editor of Airfare Watchdog has a warning for frequent fliers about price. With little transparency, airlines don’t have to tell you the formula for how they create pricing. So how can you tell if you’re getting a fair deal or ripped off on airfare?
How Airlines Determine Price
Ed Perkins, an industry expert explains to Conde Nast Traveler that there are certain factors that the airlines use to determine price—you just don’t know what they are when you’re booking.
They include whether or not the airline is flying from its hub and what competition they might be facing.
In addition, Perkins says that back in the day when the airlines were regulated they charged “standard industry fare level,” which is a benchmark for how much they can charge per mile. The airlines are no longer regulated but they still figure out how much they can get from passengers per mile versus how much it costs to transport you.
And How They Mark It Up
The rip-off comes in when the airline puts a huge markup on the cost to carry you to your destination. Kind of like the markup on wine at a swanky restaurant. If the airline is saying it costs significantly more to transport you than it does—that’s a ripoff.
Figuring out how much the airline is marking things up is a pretty impossible task given the dearth of information from airlines. A lot of times, the shorter the flight means a higher cost.
Completely content-free article.
I'm positive that now I know when I've been clickbaited.
If you have nothing to tell us, just don't write anything ! Reading your zero information article was just a big lost of time !
so how does one know when airlines are ripping one off? not a clue in your write up. even you dont know, do you? what a useless article!
what a silly article. A shorter flight often means the same taxes & charges which are govt charges which the airline doesn't get to keep. Also, flights with long cruise should be cheaper per km cos at cruise they use much less fuel than at takeoff. Looked at a flight Gold Coast Australia(OOL) to Auckland NZ(AKL) return & fare was only AUD$216 (roughly AUD$180 of this was govt charges) so the airline gets to keep a massive AUD$36 for 7 hours flying.