ceddy

Oct 2001 with SWISS on a YUL-ZRH. I'd say the econo cabin was 20% full. All the seats in the middle (2-4-2 layout) where empty. And just a few side seats full...

AsiaTraveler

SFO-TPE, on BR, 10 days after 9/11. Out of three "sections" in coach, maybe the first one was filled. The funny thing was that they had put everyone into that one section. After takeoff, I was able to move back and get three seats to myself- best transpacific night's sleep I ever got!

eljakim

Back in 1993/1994 I used to travel a lot to Poland. I would usually take the train to go from Warsaw to Krakow, but I found out that the flights were also quite cheap [by western standards].

I remember going to the airport asking if there was a flight with available seats, what the costs would be and when the flight would be depart. Basically the answer was yes, USD 17 if paid in cash, and departure when I was ready since I was the only passenger.

They were running a regular scheduled service that quite often flew empty on one or both legs.

I spent a while chatting with the flight attendants and then we flew south.

I came back to Poland a couple of years ago and everything had changed... high prices, higher load, more flights...

It was a cool trip to make.

braniff77

A couple of years ago I was the only passenger on a Delta Connection Canadair jet from Boston to Trenton NJ (sadly, an airport with no more commercial service). I've also traveled alone on several commuter flights over the years.

Supersonic Flyer

August 1996, I was the only passenger on the new established italian airline Alpi Eagles (created the same year in Venice by some former italian air forces aerobatic team pilots, operations ceased october 2007).
It was an august morning flight Venice-Rome and I had boarding pass #1. The aircraft was a 2 class Fokker 100 and I was upgraded to a business class seat. I was alone on board and during the short leg (40 minutes) all the cabin crew was for me: I remember it was a very nice flight and they offered me 2 meals and a lot of sparkling wine.

Powers106

I once flew Bangkok-Phuket on Thai Airways and I had the entire upper level business class on a 747 to myself. I was the only passenger upstairs so eventually the flight attendant just came and sat down and we chatted for about 30 minutes (half the flight). Was kinda weird actually.

peersteve

Hmmmm....I recall twice when I was the sole passenger on small planes......One was a late-night (9pm or so) flight out of asheville to ATL on DL/ASA.....being the only one made sense since who wants to leave pretty Asheville, but at that time there was a late-night final flight ATL-to-Albany, GA (ABY) that I could connect with.................The other time was more annoying: Connecting at IAD to CMH on UA at mid-day, I was standing in line to get some food to take on board when the PA blared: "Will the passenger for Columbus immediately report to Gate 99; your plane is ready to leave!!!" So I rushed to the gate, hustled on the plane to find no one else on board....but the flight crew finishing THEIR own lunch. Door closed, flight left 30 MINS EARLY with my empty stomach grubling louder than the engines!

FriendlySkies

I flew from DEN-ORD in early June on a UA international 777. F was empty, C had seven passengers, including myself, and E+/E- weren't even half full..

KiwiSurfer

On 25 July 2007 I flew on a 767-300 operating QF 163 (which I had booked under the BA 7337 code-share) from SYD to AKL. Every pax on the flight had a window seat and there were still many windows left over! So I suspect there were only around 30 paxs in Y on that flight. Not sure how many in J.

The FA spent most of the time in the galley but service was quick whenever I needed them! They were also very merry!

I suspect they had to run the flight due to cargo and lots of pax on the return AKL-SYD leg.

- James

PHL_roadwarrior

Back in 1998 a friend and I flew Air India AMD-BOM (a flight that went AMD - BOM - then on to some international destination - on a A310) - Given that we were super late coming in we thought we had missed the flight - we rush to the plane, get on board, and find out that a) the flight was delayed due to a "mechanical" and b) we got on the aircraft via 1A and were assigned seats in the REAR section of Economy and hence walked through the whole plane to realize we were the only ones on that plane!!

...of course, true to AI's reputation (at least back then - I am giving them my 3rd trip since then end of this month after reading some decent reviews lately of their biz class), service was atrocious with a "why the hell did you pick our flight" attitude. The 50+ year old overweight male flight attendant basically threw two sandwiches at us and decided to attend to his otherwise busy schedule of sitting in business class and chatting with other FA's.

luke2010

The domestic flights I took in China during SARS ... best was the one time I flew to Shenzhen, and only one other guy and he wasn't wearing a mask and said that alcohol could defend him against SARS ... we had quite a few glasses on that flight!

Doc Savage

3 on a redeye flight from Chicago to LA back in the 80s, don't remember the airline, think they are now defunct.

We only had about 20 on a Mexicana heavy flight into Mexico City from Buenos Aires right as the whole swine flu thing was breaking last spring.

planemechanic

I was the only passenger on a 747 going across the Pacific on a 12 hour flight. Not even a flight attendant on board, just me and two pilots. But I guess a non-commercial flight does not count here. Sure is quiet and a bit strange being that cooped up with no one else around for that long. I did have my choice of seats in first class though.

Bokehman

BA flight from YYZ to Heathrow the Saturday of Easter weekend back in '92.

I can't speak for the rest of the plane but the business class had 7 passengers (we had 4 in our group). I remember the FAs bringing us food and beverages every 20-30 minutes it seemed.

biggestbopper

I came to the US on "stranded student" fare of $99 on Pan Am after Freddy Laker went under.

I was the only one on the 747 to JFK. Except for the crew.

Must have been thirty or more years ago.