Naughty frequent fliers - throwaway, point-beyond ticketing
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: DFW
Programs: UA Pleb, HH Gold, PWP General Secretary
Posts: 23,199
I pulled a throwaway on a reward ticket once. I did not get caught.
#18
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: CLE
Programs: The standard ones.
Posts: 27
Is the 'throwaway' restriction somewhere in the fare rules? I couldn't find the language.
#21
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: Clinging to the edifices of a decadent past from the biggest city in America nobody really cares about.
Programs: (ಠ_ಠ)
Posts: 9,077
#22
Join Date: Oct 2006
Programs: AA Lifetime Gold (1.8M), CO Silver (2011)
Posts: 127
Amtrak Code Shares
Another example of beyond ticketing:
CO is offering PHL-EWR-PDX; PDX-EWR-PHL via Amtrak for significantly less than EWR-PDX, PDX-EWR (possibly to compete with SW's PHL-PDX service).
Does CO have anyway of knowing whether or not you actually ride the train from Philadelphia 30th Street Station to EWR? Would Amtrak care if you got on/off before 30th Street? Once the ticket has been collected Amtrak doesn't exactly check when you get off, beyond lifting the marker that they leave at your place.
CO is offering PHL-EWR-PDX; PDX-EWR-PHL via Amtrak for significantly less than EWR-PDX, PDX-EWR (possibly to compete with SW's PHL-PDX service).
Does CO have anyway of knowing whether or not you actually ride the train from Philadelphia 30th Street Station to EWR? Would Amtrak care if you got on/off before 30th Street? Once the ticket has been collected Amtrak doesn't exactly check when you get off, beyond lifting the marker that they leave at your place.
#23
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: Bay Area, CA
Programs: UA Plat 2MM; AS MVP Gold 75K
Posts: 35,072
#24
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2006
Programs: DL SkyClub Lifer
Posts: 10,000
Back when I was a lowly silver, I had a situation on a partner airline (not saying who) where I was supposed to connect through a hub (not saying where), get to a destination (ditto), and then I was going to take a bus to another city (ditto). The opportunity came up to get on an earlier flight, and since I wanted to get to that final destination sooner, I paid to change to it, but then found out there was no earlier bus. D'oh!
Rather than sit around waiting for a bus, I booked a cheap one-way from the hub to an airport closer to my final destination, on a LCC. I told the agents at my origin that I only wanted my bag checked as far as the hub (this was back when I still checked bags!), picked it up there, checked in at the LCC, got to my final destination maybe 20 hours early.
Time went by and the miles didn't post. The flight I had taken to the hub was over 4,000 miles, and those miles were the difference between silver and gold, so I called around until they appeared... along with, to my surprise, miles for the connecting segment I hadn't taken!
That was a short segment and made no difference in the grand scheme of things, but I never claimed to have flown it, and never asked for the miles - they just appeared.
Rather than sit around waiting for a bus, I booked a cheap one-way from the hub to an airport closer to my final destination, on a LCC. I told the agents at my origin that I only wanted my bag checked as far as the hub (this was back when I still checked bags!), picked it up there, checked in at the LCC, got to my final destination maybe 20 hours early.
Time went by and the miles didn't post. The flight I had taken to the hub was over 4,000 miles, and those miles were the difference between silver and gold, so I called around until they appeared... along with, to my surprise, miles for the connecting segment I hadn't taken!
That was a short segment and made no difference in the grand scheme of things, but I never claimed to have flown it, and never asked for the miles - they just appeared.
#25
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: EWR and SAN
Programs: PWP Direktor of Homeland, CO Plat* 1MM,UA 1K,BD Gold,DL Gold,SPG Platinum, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 7,551
Time went by and the miles didn't post. The flight I had taken to the hub was over 4,000 miles, and those miles were the difference between silver and gold, so I called around until they appeared... along with, to my surprise, miles for the connecting segment I hadn't taken!
However, nowadays with boarding pass readers at the gate, reconciliation of the flight, it's much harder to get away with. All that mattered in the old days is that you checked-in.
#27
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: EWR
Programs: Marriott Bonvoy Lifetime Gold (Current Platinum), United Mileage Plus, Avis Preferred
Posts: 850
Another example of beyond ticketing:
CO is offering PHL-EWR-PDX; PDX-EWR-PHL via Amtrak for significantly less than EWR-PDX, PDX-EWR (possibly to compete with SW's PHL-PDX service).
Does CO have anyway of knowing whether or not you actually ride the train from Philadelphia 30th Street Station to EWR? Would Amtrak care if you got on/off before 30th Street? Once the ticket has been collected Amtrak doesn't exactly check when you get off, beyond lifting the marker that they leave at your place.
CO is offering PHL-EWR-PDX; PDX-EWR-PHL via Amtrak for significantly less than EWR-PDX, PDX-EWR (possibly to compete with SW's PHL-PDX service).
Does CO have anyway of knowing whether or not you actually ride the train from Philadelphia 30th Street Station to EWR? Would Amtrak care if you got on/off before 30th Street? Once the ticket has been collected Amtrak doesn't exactly check when you get off, beyond lifting the marker that they leave at your place.