A friend of mine just got a phone call that her adult son was hit by a car in Florida. We are in CT. His father is with him now, but he will leave later this week at which time she wants to go down. The airlines are quoting her over $300 RT! She's going to have to take several trips over the next few months that he's in the hospital, and she can plan ahead for the rest, but this first flight is killing her. Do any airlines offer emergency fares in situations like this?

Actually $300 isn't bad. The cheapest tickets from Boston/Hartford to Miami/Orlando are $150-$200 anyway. I don't like to recommend the "off-brands" but AirTran has a 3 day advance booking for $150. She will probably want to leave right away though. The only thing is to check with someone like AirTran -- I don't know how hard it is to get on standby last ditch fares from where she is but that might also work (see post elsewhere here). She probably doesn't need the trauma of hanging around airports waiting for a seat to open but if money is tight . . .

Where in Connecticut going to where in Florida what day leave and what day return? As said before, $300 isn't bad for the first flight down, but one would need more details to determine exactly where to go.

Good luck with your friend's son.

For example, I'm guessing here... let's say you're going Hartford to Orlando... leave Wed Jan 13 or Thur Jan 14 around mid-day. $134 to Orlando on Delta or USAir. Both are non-stop.

Return Tues Jan 19 in the evening for $82 on the same airline as the way down.

Your ticket cost is now $216 (plus or minus a couple of dollars). Of course, this fare has to be available at the time of booking.

Your friend may be able to save some money by not flying directly into the destination city and have someone pick her up at that airport. I imagine she'll not be in a condition to drive.

When making your reservation, call the airlines directly and DO SAY SOMETHING to the ticket agent about the situation. The agent, if they have any compassion, will do a little more checking around than usual and perhaps can put you on an alternate flight for less money. Call around to a couple airlines to see who has the best deal, but don't take too long... tickets to Florida go fast in the winter.

There are no guarantees they'll be able to help. I believe this type of service is done sporadically by the airlines and it all depends upon who you talk to and what mood they're in.

One last option... wait until Wednesday at 5:00 PM EST to book your flight and check out the FLIGHT SPECIALS on Webflyer. They consolidate the best weekend fares from the majority of the airlines so you can pick out the best one. You *may* get lucky and pick up a $150 RT ticket. Note these usually depart Friday and return the following Monday / Tuesday. This URL is at:

http://webflyer.com/@deal/@deal.htm

Some airlines actually send these specials out on Tuesday, so check their websites if you can after that time.

Good Luck!

While we are on the topic, I will share my experiences with Continental and Northwest. When an immediate family member of mine passed away, I called CO and asked for an emergency fare. They claimed that they did not do that anymore (even though I was elite - no exceptions). I then called NW and not only did they give me an emergency rate, but they also called me the next morning to make sure that I would not miss the flight. When I arrived at the airport, I was upgraded to first.

I would check with the airlines that fly out of Connecticut to Florida and as Buck said just say you have a family emergency (I don't think it's necessary to give details unless you wish) and see if the airlines offer any special emergency fares. You might get someone who might be able to help.

If you can, let us know what happens. This situation could happen to any of us. CATMAN