Airfare Savings

written by Sally Black

• The Bottom Line
  Forget all the hype and the warm fuzzy television commercials about how airlines want to be your best friend. The airlines are in the business of making money. Their goal is to put as many people as possible into their most expensive seats, as often as possible. Finding the best price is complicated for consumers. Of course this works to the advantage of the airlines. If you understand how the industry works and some of the “behind the scenes” strategy, then the way airlines price their seats is not as mind boggling.
  
• Flying
  Many pediatricians recommend that you not board an airplane with an infant under 3 months of age. This is mainly because airliners recirculate their air and your child is more at risk for airborne infections. Sometimes, flying is unavoidable. If so, be prepared and make sure you have phone numbers of pediatricians in your destination in case you should need help. You may want to pack pain relievers in your carry on and check with your doctor for the appropriate dose for your child in case they suffer from any ear pain on take off and landing. Having infants and small children drink during take off and landing will help alleviate this problem. It will also help with dehydration that can occur in flight. Also if you are traveling overseas, be careful about packing fresh fruits and vegetables as carry on snacks. Often you will not be allowed through customs with them.
  The FAA states that Flying is very safe, and mile for mile a child is safer flying unrestrained in an airplane than riding restrained in a motor vehicle. Still the FAA recommends that all children weighing under 40 pounds are safest when sitting in a certified child restraint system - a rear-facing infant seat for those under 20 pounds and a forward-facing child safety seat for those 20-40 pounds. Most child safety seats on the market today are certified for air travel (CHECK THE LABEL SPECIFICALLY ON YOUR CAR SEAT TO MAKE SURE). Harnesses and booster seats are not allowed, as older children are better protected by the plane's seat belts. The design of the plane's reclining seat backs and tray tables and the lack of shoulder belts make it dangerous to use harnesses and booster seats.
  Most airlines however, do not require children under the age of two to buy a separate ticket. This means that your child must sit on your lap throughout the duration of your flight. This also means your car seat is checked into the baggage hold and in case of an emergency, your child is not as protected as if they were sitting in a certified car seat. Many airlines, however, offer significant discounts on fares for children under two, as much as 50 percent. This means they would have a seat to themselves and could use their car seat. Check specifically with the airline you are flying with to check their specific rules and regulations for infants and car seats. If at all possible, you should purchase a ticket for the child so they can be assured of a place for a child safety seat. Besides, this will honestly be more comfortable for your child, yourself and other passengers. If this is not affordable, families should fly during non-peak times to increase the chance of an available seat for your child and safety seat. Often if you ask the gate agent and flight attendants politely and courteously, they will make every attempt to accommodate your family on board.
  Bassinets are also helpful for smaller children. Many airlines offer these on long flights. Usually bassinets are only available in the bulkhead or first row of seats on the plane in each class of service. Again, every airline is different. The best advice is to get to the airport and check in early so that you are assured the best seat assignments.
  
• The Difference at Home and Abroad
  80% of flights taken by Americans are Domestic flights. This means Americans usually fly within the borders of the United States. Only 20% of the flights taken by Americans are International flights to foreign countries. Everywhere else, the exact opposite is true. In European countries, for example, most flights are International. Geography is obviously the reason why the air travel markets are so different. Nonetheless, this is an important fact to realize when trying to understand the prices charged by the airlines. Because the markets are so different, the airlines have different costs that effect their bottom line. As a result, they way US and foreign carriers price their tickets is completely different. Travel “experts” often give generalize advice for saving money on airline tickets. As a result, their advice ends up being useless or even misleading unless you differentiate between US and foreign carriers. Finding low fares on US airlines is a completely different strategy then if you are trying to fly overseas.

• Airlines, Online or a Travel Agent It would be reasonable to assume that by going directly to the airlines and “cutting out the middleman” that you would get the lowest price airline ticket. This natural assumption is wrong and airlines use it to their advantage. If you call an airline or visit their website, the last thing you will find is unbiased information. Remember the goal of the airlines...to sell you the most expensive seat possible on their airplanes as often as possible. The airlines keep close watch on one another, even if they don't tell you about it. Usually when one raises or lowers fares on a particular route then other carriers servicing that route usually change their fares accordingly. Using an unbiased resource, a travel agent or online website will give you the “big picture” and alert you to saving opportunities that you would not find by dealing with one airline directly.
  Of course the airlines want you to go through them directly. In an effort to maintain control on their distribution, they have recently cut the commissions that they pay to their “appointed agents”. Travel websites continually are upgrading their technology to keep their fulfillment costs in check. Travel agents are having a very difficult time. Commission cuts have put many out of business. Many agents simply cannot afford to give free advice any more and have been forced to charge service fees. So where does this leave the traveler looking for the best deals on airline tickets? A good rule is to use the do-it-yourself approach and buy your ticket online. Travel websites offer great means of comparison shopping with the simple click of the mouse. You can save time and money with simple transactions online. If your travel plans are a bit complicated...let's say buying tickets for several families attending a reunion or you want a flight that has more than one stop-over city, or you are planning an unusual type of vacation, it would be best to consult a travel agent. If you need complicated travel planning, a good, experienced travel agent is a definite advantage.

• Frequent Flyer Programs
  Another approach airlines use to woo customers directly and keep them loyal is by offering incentives like frequent flyer mile bonuses. If someone in your household is a frequent business traveler, accumulated a lot of points and does not mind managing their account, then you could see some value on flights at a later date. In my experience, it is best to get cash discounts on today's flight then hoping to recoup mileage benefits in the future. Again, different strokes for different folks. Read the fine print and make sure the incentives offered with mileage programs are truly beneficial to your circumstances.

• Shop Airports
  One last tip for saving money on US flights is to compare airports. Usually the larger “hub” airports are serviced by the major carriers. These dominant airlines usually set the pricing for that city and the other airlines follow suit. Often times the smaller or independent airlines must use smaller city airports. Carriers such as Air Trans, Midwest Express, Jet Blue, National, as well as the larger independents like Alaska Air and Southwest can offer travelers substantial savings. Sometimes a short drive to a suburban airport is worth the savings. There are usually other benefits like cheaper parking, less traffic and crowds to battle. Again, you must weigh and measure all of these factors as well as the circumstances of your family. In other cases, it will cost more to fly from local airports because you must make connections in order to reach your final destination.