Originally Posted by alex1948
I've often wondered at the efficiency of BA's yield management team. On flights to Europe, BA seems to start pricing at full fare within several days of departure even though there may be quite a number of unfilled seats when the plane takes off.
Filling every seat on the aircraft is not the object of the exercise. The object of the exercise is to maximise the revenue from the seats that you have.
Simplistic example: Suppose you have 10 seats left to sell. You could put them on at £100 each, or you could put them on at £680 each. At £100 each, you'll sell all of them. However, at £680 each there'll only be two desperate businessmen who need them and you'll take off with 8 empty seats.
Which is the better business decision?