Originally Posted by
Kacee
Per OP, it's JFK-SFO.
You have completely ignored the fact that many companies will not allow J purchases.
You are also wrong about Z costing more than Y on this route. Y is more expensive ($1676 vs. $1659).
So I repeat, J7 Z4 Y0 is money-losing inventory management. UA is likely to lose full Y fare purchases on this flight and instead wind up giving J seats away as upgrades or for $200-300 buy-ups.
Impossible to make that statement.
FYI - the transcons to New York are a whole different beast for corporates. They are dominated by the investment banks, consulting firms, law firms, and media companies who have 'we pay for J' on 5+ hour flights policies for most employees.
And they pay very different fares than what are published to the public. Walkup last seat J seat on AA, UA, or Delta is around $999 one way for the bigger guys who give them volume.
And last seat Y as you can imagine is close to that or a bit lower with their discounts.
It's all about those contracts, which ultimately push up fares for those who don't have them to absurd levels for such a stage length (i.e. $8,000 roundtrip in First on AA).