In article .net,
Hilary wrote:

Some airlines don't really do fare sales except on new routes, so if
you're flying an established route you gain nothing by waiting.

What airlines are those? I've seen a few turd-world airlines that have
fixed fares, but in the US and Europe every airline I can think of has
fares that vary all the time, starting from high, then getting lower,
then increasing again as time gets closer.

On popular routes - like UK-India or UK-Australia at Christmas - you need
to book as far in advance as possible to get the cheaper seats because
they sold out very quickly. 9+ months was normal for those.

Even for those, I find it very hard to believe that booking 12 months
out is the best strategy. 6 to 9 months sounds about right, but not
12 months.

For a flight 12 months from now, the price will drop first before
increasing.

Nope. Most airlines release an entire year's fares at once.

Give me a route where you think today's price for a flight in June
2007 is the best price one can possibly get, i.e., there won't be any
time between now and then when the same seat on the same flight will
be selling for less.

Now, some people don't really care about the price, and just want to
book and forget instead of hunting for the best deal. Even then I
doubt very much that booking 12 months in advance is a good strategy.