Airlines are ordered by DOT to give full refunds instead of vouchers and to stop hiding fees

[roguenuke]

They're already being forced to sell less. The price will adjust accordingly.

Maybe we will start investing more in high speed rail then, allow other options.

 

[roguenuke]

Wonderful news until you have to pay more because airlines are effectively forced to fly with empty seats.

My first flights ever, to and from bootcamp, had plenty of empty seats. I doubt too many flights would be really empty (in fact, there were several empty seats on our flight home from England a couple years ago, and it was great because I was able to change seats to sit with my teen son).

 

[PeacefulWarrior]

Yes. Climb the big-boy stairs, find his way off of a small stage, tell the truth, or read a teleprompter...

I know, if you stumble on stairs that means you're REALLLY REALLY dumb!! I mean WHO DOES THAT right?

 

[beefheart]

How dare the government get in the way of airlines profit making ability?

Except for Q1, all the airlines lost money, first quarter is always the worst. Southwest lost money, and they are dropping 5 cities, AA, UA, B6,AS,NK all with losses, Delta barely made money.

But, I agree, this is needed, if all the airlines have to do it, it won't give any one of them an unfair advantage.

 

[reflechissez]

They're already being forced to sell less. The price will adjust accordingly.

In what world does lower demand translate to higher prices?

 

[Noodlegawd]

There are marketing and pricing strategies to deal with that, they just haven't wanted to use them.

You're missing the point. People change their plans at the last minute. For any given flight this could be 10-20 percent of the seats.

 

[Questerr]

Unlikely.

Really? Raising prices doesn’t decrease demand? Airline tickets are perfectly inelastic?

 

[roguenuke]

You're missing the point. People change their plans at the last minute. For any given flight this could be 10-20 percent of the seats.

And that's what actual standby is for, having people know they are being sold a standby ticket rather than overselling/overbooking flights without informing.

 

[Noodlegawd]

And that's what actual standby is for, having people know they are being sold a standby ticket rather than overselling/overbooking flights without informing.

Everybody knows that flights are overbooked, and that there is an infinitesimal chance they will be bumped. What's there to inform?

 

[roguenuke]

Everybody knows that flights are overbooked, and that there is an infinitesimal chance they will be bumped. What's there to inform?

It is not infinitesimal at all when it comes to your chance of being bumped, as we've seen on many occasions, so now airlines will have to do better. Not all flights are overbooked either.

The Rate of Airline Passengers Bumped From Flights Doubled Last Year—Here's What to Expect This Summer

Some airlines plan to oversell even more flights this summer.

www.cntraveler.com

Most people choose to give up their seat.

 

[Noodlegawd]

It is not infinitesimal at all when it comes to your chance of being bumped, as we've seen on many occasions, so now airlines will have to do better. Not all flights are overbooked either.

The Rate of Airline Passengers Bumped From Flights Doubled Last Year—Here's What to Expect This Summer

Some airlines plan to oversell even more flights this summer.

www.cntraveler.com

Most people choose to give up their seat.

Exactly. They chose to give up their seat and get compensated. A 1 in 30,000 chance of getting bumped absolutely is infinitesimal.

 

[Variant]

Yes, delivering on promises tends to get you votes in a democracy.... Frankly, its the way it is suppose to work.

Frankly, getting rid of bad and harmful business practices seems a perfectly legitimate use of government power to me.

How dare we vote for people who care about protecting us from harmful business practices!

 

[Variant]

By raising prices on flights. This isn't difficult.

Maybe. What they are doing now is selling stand by seats at regular seat prices.

I can't imagine that systemic fraud is the best business practice here.

 

[molten_dragon]

While I have been lucky in not getting bumped from a flight, maybe this new requirement will cut back on how much airlines overbook a flight.
What's the best deal you have received to accept getting bumped from a flight?

I wish there was more detail on some of this.

For example if your flight gets canceled does it now mean you get a cash refund and put on the next flight for free? Or do you get a choice? Or do you only have the option of a cash refund now? If it's the latter, that isn't necessarily a better deal than a free ticket on the next flight.

 

[molten_dragon]

Wonderful news. Overbooking needs to stop. If someone is purchasing a ticket on standby, airlines should make that clear up-front.

This doesn't have anything to do with overbooking though.

 

[upsideguy]

They're already being forced to sell less. The price will adjust accordingly.

Nice thought, except it doesn't work that way. No business can simply pass costs along. If they could, businesses would never go bankrupt. Some industries can pass costs along better than others. If the underlying product/service is inelastic to price changes, passing costs along is easy. In contrast, if underlying product/service is price elastic (such as air travel), they can pass along very little. They have to eat some or all of it.

Hidden fees were a way to charge the customer in a way that did not appear in the fare. Raising the fare to compensate for the hidden fee may work to a degree, but will not work in its entirety. If it did, the airlines would never have resorted to hidden fares.

Air travel is one of the most elastic commodities out there. Airlines can not just pass costs along.

 

[ALiberalModerate]

By raising prices on flights. This isn't difficult.

It's actually going to be forcing United and American to compete on service with Delta. Delta has far fewer delays and cancelations than either United or American, and at the same fare rates.

Moreover, many airlines now make more money on selling miles to cobranded cards than they do on fares.

 

[ALiberalModerate]

Wonderful news until you have to pay more because airlines are effectively forced to fly with empty seats.

I agree with you, but this rule has nothing to do with airlines overbooking.

 

[beefheart]

And that's what actual standby is for, having people know they are being sold a standby ticket rather than overselling/overbooking flights without informing.

You have to overbook. About 10% of pax don't show up.

 

[ALiberalModerate]

They already have a hard enough time selling enough tickets. Raising prices will result in them selling less.

I don't think airlines are having trouble filling flights these days, especially international flights. Moreover, the front of the cabin typically pays for the flight. That is why Delta One or United Polaris is 5k to 15k per seat (unless you buy an hour before the flight with United).

 

[ALiberalModerate]

You have to overbook. About 10% of pax don't show up.

If I am not mistaken, this is often due to their prior flight being delayed and missing their connection.

 

[ALiberalModerate]

Maybe we will start investing more in high speed rail then, allow other options.

Our problem is population density. Even in China, many of their highspeed rail routes lose money.

 

[ALiberalModerate]

Except for Q1, all the airlines lost money, first quarter is always the worst. Southwest lost money, and they are dropping 5 cities, AA, UA, B6,AS,NK all with losses, Delta barely made money.

But, I agree, this is needed, if all the airlines have to do it, it won't give any one of them an unfair advantage.

We travel internationally a lot. First quarter there are often really good deals. For example, we went to Paris this in early February for $550 round trip on Delta, and because we have Gold status (which it seems tons of people have these days), we were upgraded to comfort plus.

 

[roguenuke]

Our problem is population density. Even in China, many of their highspeed rail routes lose money.

I think it would work if it was limited to the places between which we have the highest airplane travel. Granted, that tends to be hubs for airlines, but it can be broken down a little further to look at final destinations from starting points. That would be the best way to build up highspeed rail, especially if people are going to be complaining about air travel more.

 

[beefheart]

We travel internationally a lot. First quarter there are often really good deals. For example, we went to Paris this in early February for $550 round trip on Delta, and because we have Gold status (which it seems tons of people have these days), we were upgraded to comfort plus.

I fly free on AA, standby, or 20% off the lowest fare. I also get 20% discount on frequent Flier points. Wife has been too busy with medical stuff to fly.much. We are going somewhere over Memorial day weekend, it's a surprise to me.