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#1
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
Is there a whole website, or a section of a website, devoted to selling
vacant airplane seats at the last minute, say within the last 3 or 4 hours of takeoff time. I'm figuring that 4 hours before a flight takes off airlines might be willing to sell vacant seats at 1/2 or even 1/10 price since they get zero if the seat travels empty. |
#2
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
Alan wrote:
Is there a whole website, or a section of a website, devoted to selling vacant airplane seats at the last minute, say within the last 3 or 4 hours of takeoff time. I'm figuring that 4 hours before a flight takes off airlines might be willing to sell vacant seats at 1/2 or even 1/10 price since they get zero if the seat travels empty. I think you figure wrong. Revenue management strategy would rather they go empty than everyone in the world waits until the last second to bid then rushes to the airport. -- mysteryflyer http://www.mysteryflyer.com/ |
#3
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
"mysteryflyer" wrote:
Alan wrote: Is there a whole website, or a section of a website, devoted to selling vacant airplane seats at the last minute, say within the last 3 or 4 hours of takeoff time. I'm figuring that 4 hours before a flight takes off airlines might be willing to sell vacant seats at 1/2 or even 1/10 price since they get zero if the seat travels empty. I think you figure wrong. IMHO, airlines know that they can count on a certain volume of last-minute or walk-up traffic, desperate enuff to pay retail. They only give price breaks earlier to get the plane full enuff that they won't lose their tails, and the rest is icing on the cake. =R= |
#4
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
"mysteryflyer" wrote in message ... Alan wrote: Is there a whole website, or a section of a website, devoted to selling vacant airplane seats at the last minute, say within the last 3 or 4 hours of takeoff time. I'm figuring that 4 hours before a flight takes off airlines might be willing to sell vacant seats at 1/2 or even 1/10 price since they get zero if the seat travels empty. I think you figure wrong. Revenue management strategy would rather they go empty than everyone in the world waits until the last second to bid then rushes to the airport. -- Yes, but after selling seats for months, don't some airlines have web sales a week or two before take off time related to how full the planes are? I was wondering if this concept got extended from "a week before" to "hours before." But the intent of my query wasn't to challenge ticket pricing strategy. If there aren't any such websites, then there aren't. I was just asking. |
#5
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
"Alan" wrote:
... the intent of my query wasn't to challenge ticket pricing strategy. If there aren't any such websites, then there aren't. I 'member getting ****y once when I priced a flight within a few days and the airline quoted a fare that was 3x the fare that I could have gotten 3 weeks before... I was like, "If you could get me there for 1/3 that fare two weeks ago, why not now -- its the same plane." Reply: "Well, you might think so." The air-folk seem to have figured that out those of us who walk up to a counter or call a reservation center with only hours to go are not likely to be discount shoppers, but to have a last-minute travel impulse or an urgent need to get someplace, and will pay the full-fare, regardless. =R= |
#6
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
Alan wrote: Yes, but after selling seats for months, don't some airlines have web sales a week or two before take off time related to how full the planes are? I was wondering if this concept got extended from "a week before" to "hours before." But the intent of my query wasn't to challenge ticket pricing strategy. If there aren't any such websites, then there aren't. I was just asking. This spring there was a run of last-minute discount fares to Tokyo. If you were flexible and could leave with only one-to-three day's notice, you could get there really cheap. It was a temporary thing, though, I haven't seen those last-minute fares in weeks. |
#7
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
On 15 Jun 2006 07:24:08 -0700, "Caren" wrote:
Alan wrote: Yes, but after selling seats for months, don't some airlines have web sales a week or two before take off time related to how full the planes are? I was wondering if this concept got extended from "a week before" to "hours before." But the intent of my query wasn't to challenge ticket pricing strategy. If there aren't any such websites, then there aren't. I was just asking. This spring there was a run of last-minute discount fares to Tokyo. If you were flexible and could leave with only one-to-three day's notice, you could get there really cheap. It was a temporary thing, though, I haven't seen those last-minute fares in weeks. LH used to do a "you choose the country (or larger region) we choose the airport" last minute deal at stupid prices. They scrapped it because of 7/11. It's not obvious why this deal should create a security risk when normal late bookings don't? tim |
#8
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
"tim(not at home)" wrote:
LH used to do a "you choose the country (or larger region) we choose the airport" last minute deal at stupid prices. They scrapped it because of 7/11. It's not obvious why this deal should create a security risk when normal late bookings don't? What's all this I hear about 7/11? A lot of people shop at 7/11, but IMO, their prices tend to be higher than you can get almost everywhere. They als seem to be run by foreigners. What? Oh, that's different.. Nevermind. |
#9
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
Caren schrieb:
Yes, but after selling seats for months, don't some airlines have web sales a week or two before take off time related to how full the planes are? I was wondering if this concept got extended from "a week before" to "hours before." But the intent of my query wasn't to challenge ticket pricing strategy. If there aren't any such websites, then there aren't. I was just asking. This spring there was a run of last-minute discount fares to Tokyo. If you were flexible and could leave with only one-to-three day's notice, you could get there really cheap. It was a temporary thing, though, I haven't seen those last-minute fares in weeks. They do offer such fares on ltur.de as Super Last Minute in the eveing (German local time). Well, not to Baku or Port Harcourt because people don't go there on holidays but on business. But it happens that people have a few days up to two weeks, they might stay at home or leave for Tunisia/Turkey/Crimea/Bulgaria/Italy/Croatia/Egypt/DomRep, whatever is cheaper. Regards, ULF |
#10
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Cheap Seats Hours Before Takeoff?
"Alan" wrote in message . .. Is there a whole website, or a section of a website, devoted to selling vacant airplane seats at the last minute, say within the last 3 or 4 hours of takeoff time. I'm figuring that 4 hours before a flight takes off airlines might be willing to sell vacant seats at 1/2 or even 1/10 price since they get zero if the seat travels empty. It doesn't work that way. Airfares are not logical unless you understand that a last minute ticket generally costs more, not less, than a ticket bought earlier. |
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