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American reports results, and they're not pretty

Posted by George Hobica on Thursday, October 22, 2009

American Airlines lost $359 million in Q3 2009 on revenue of $5.1 billion, which was 20% less than Q3 2008. That is a huge drop in revenue, no doubt because fewer people are traveling, and at lower fares. And as if that's not bad enough, the third quarter is usually one of the strongest revenue periods. The fourth quarter is the difficult one.

And can you imagine what the figures would have looked like without the new fees airlines are charging? One wonders if some airlines would survive without them.

St Croix & St Thomas Sale from American Airlines

Posted by Tracy Stewart on Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Fight off those fall temps a little longer with a trip to St Thomas or St Croix. American just so happens to have a sale, good for Monday - Thursday travel through December 17. Fares require a 2-night minimum stay, with a maximum stay of 30 days.

All fares must be purchased by November 3, and include:

Nashville to St Croix $465 round-trip

New York to St Thomas $292 round-trip

Miami to St Thomas $230 round-trip

Chicago to St Croix $439 round-trip

Norfolk to St Thomas $407 round-trip

San Francisco to St Thomas $453 round-trip

Categories: Caribbean/Mexico/Latin America Airfares

South Florida Sale to the Caribbean & Latin American

Posted by Tracy Stewart on Wednesday, October 21, 2009

American Airlines is back with their standard Caribbean & Latin America Sale from Miami and Ft Lauderdale. Fares are valid for travel through December 10, Monday - Thursday, except for blackout dates November 20 - 30. Tickets require a 2-day minimum stay, with an allowed 30-day maximum stay.

Book by October 26, 11:00am ET. Fares include:

Miami to St Croix, USVI $344 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Aruba, Aruba $346 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Barbados, Barbados $380 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Bogota, Colombia $347 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to George Town, Bahamas $305 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands $281 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Guatemala City, Guatemala $244 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Managua, Nicaragua $249 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Marsh Harbour, Bahamas $305 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Medellin, Colombia $292 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to North Eleuthera, Bahamas $305 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Panama City, Panama $234 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to St Kitts, St Kitts & Nevis $394 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to St Maarten, Netherlands Antilles $423 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Miami to Treasure Cay, Bahamas $305 round-trip, nonstop, incl. all taxes

Categories: Caribbean/Mexico/Latin America Airfares

Air France ups fees for checked bags

Posted by Tracy Stewart on Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Flying Air France this Fall? Starting November 1, Air France will charge a $50 fee for checking a second bag, weighing up to 50lbs (23 kilos). For passengers departing from Europe, this fee will be EUR50. Bags weighing between 50lbs and 70lbs will now cost $100 (or for European departures, EUR100), up from the previous charge of $50. For checking a third (or additional) bag up to the allowed weight of 50lbs, passengers will be charged $200 (or for European departures, make that EUR200). These new fees apply only to passengers traveling in Economy Class between the US and Europe, as well as Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Turkey. Passengers are allowed to check one free bag, weighing up to 50lbs.

Passengers flying in First or Business Class are exempt from these new baggage rules. Also, those flying Economy with Gold, Silver, SkyTeam Elite, or Elite Plus status are allowed 2 pieces of checked luggage at no cost, provided bags do not exceed 50lbs each.

Club 2000, Skipper members, and those traveling in Premium Voyageur Class are allowed 2 pieces of checked luggage at no cost, provided bags do not exceed 70lbs each.

More info at AirFrance.com.

Categories: Europe/Africa/Middle East Airfares

Holiday fares go up and down, continued

Posted by George Hobica on Wednesday, October 21, 2009

According to a recent article in the NY Times, "From New York, a round-trip American Airlines flight to Chicago [departing Nov 25 and returning Nov 29] that cost $354 on Sept. 14 was $540 on Thursday [Oct 15], a 52 percent jump, according to Yapta.com, which tracks fares."

Well today (Oct 21) that route is back down to $428 round-trip including taxes on JetBlue, still not exactly a bargain, but had you listened to the Times' advice that "Dilly-dallying, even waiting just a few days, could carry a steep price [since] fares, though still lower now than at this time last year, are rising each day," well, you just would have paid more than you needed to.

Another route cited by the Times, New York to Orlando, went up from $524 on Sept. 24 to $614 on Oct 15. That route, from JFK, as of 11 a.m. today, is available for $399 round-trip including tax on JetBlue nonstops. Again, not great, but much less than $614.

We have a feeling that consumers are going to look at these high fares and just say no thanks, and that the airlines, which are playing a game of chicken with flyers, will eventually give in and lower peak holiday fares.

Categories: Airfarewatchdog News

Will a passenger bill of rights ever fly?

Posted by George Hobica on Monday, October 19, 2009

Airfarewatchdog wonders how many potential airline customers are refusing to fly until they can be assured that they won't be trapped in a cramped airplane parked overnight on a tarmac. Every time another news story appears detailing the suffering of passengers in such situations, with no food or working lavatories, no doubt another few hundred flyers take to their cars and Greyhound.

Talk about negative publicity! So if only to avoid more bad press, you'd think the airlines would be behind two bills currently before the US Congress designed to give airline passengers some peace of mind.

In truth, "only" about US airline 200,000 passengers were stuck on a tarmac for three hours or more in the first half of the year (although this figure doesn't include international flights or those on smaller regional aircraft). The airlines note that this works out to an infinitesimally small percentage considering how many people they fly each year, but tell that to those unfortunate enough to have sat in a cardboard-thin seat surrounded by crying babies for 8 hours, with nothing to eat or drink. And don't use that logic on Kate Hanni, a victim of one of the more celebrated tarmac delays of recent years, and executive director of Flyersrights.org, the principal advocacy group behind the flyers rights movement. "If the problem is so small," she said at a recent hearing sponsored by her group and the Business Travel Coalition, "then solving it shouldn't be so bad."

The two "passenger rights" bills, HR 624 in the House, and S 213 in the Senate, state that if a flight is "substantially" delayed, the airline must provide "adequate" food and water, "adequate" restroom facilities, cabin ventilation and comfortable cabin temperatures, and access to medical treatment.

After a delay of three hours during which the passengers have been unable to deplane, the airline must provide passengers the option of returning to the terminal if this can be done safely.

But there are some problems here. Most airlines no longer provide food on flights, except for business or first class passengers. So it's not clear how they'll be able to provide nourishment during a long delay. Does Pizza Hut deliver to airport tarmacs? As for returning to the terminal in a "safe" manner, that's a rather substantial loophole. If there are no available gates for a delayed aircraft to use, how will the passengers get off? They can't simply jump out the emergency slides and walk to the terminal.

And if the pilot determines that deplaning would jeopardize passenger safety or security, then no deplaning.

There is no language in the bills specifying what penalties might be assessed for failure to adhere to the proposed regulations. So this could be a bill without bite.

Plus, as the two bills recognize, airports have to be part of the solution. They need to develop operating plans to handle unscheduled deplanings, including a way to safely transport passengers from the tarmac or taxiway to the terminal if no gates are available. Some airports, such as Dallas Ft. Worth, are planning to add buses with mobile stairways to meet planes and carry passengers to terminals. DFW has also designated two terminal gates for unscheduled deplanings. But most airports don't have this equipment, and without a workable plan any passenger rights bill that emerges from Congress may amount to nothing more than good intentions. Airplanes arriving from international destinations that are diverted to airports without customs and immigration facilities propose another issue that must be considered.

Needless to say, the airline industry, and the Airline Transport Association, its trade group, aren't thrilled. They argue that a passenger rights bill will have "unintended consequences," forcing airlines to cancel flights at a time when capacity cuts make it less likely that their customers will find convenient alternatives.

Aircraft that go back to the gate for deplaning lose their place in line for take off, industry insiders note, causing further delays; others argue that this policy should be changed, allowing such aircraft to regain their takeoff priority.

And other industry observers, such as the University of Michigan's Amy Cohn, suggest that tarmac delays are a symptom, not the disease. These delays wouldn't happen so often, they say, if the US air traffic control system weren't stuck in the 1960's. It needs to be modernized so that more aircraft can share limited air space.

Delays could also be reduced if the FAA restricted the number of take offs and landings at the nation's most crowded airports, such as Chicago O'Hare and New York's LaGuardia and JFK. JFK has slots for 81 operations per hour, but averages 126. But who knows: Now that airlines are eliminating flights and parking hundreds of jets in the desert, this problem might just go away.

Categories: Airline Industry News

Virgin America & Google offer free WiFi, lower fares

Posted by Tracy Stewart on Monday, October 19, 2009

Virgin America has partnered with Google to offer free in-flight WiFi from November 10 through January 15. And while the seats aren't free, they are reduced. Coast-to-coast fares start from $99 each way, while other fares range from $39 and $59 each way. Of course these fares aren't available on peak holiday travel, with blackout dates of November 25, 28, 30, and December 17 through January 5.

Book your tickets by October 20, 7am Pacific Time.

So, yeah. Free WiFi during the holidays. And don't worry about your battery dying because every seat has power outlets.

For those curious as to what Virgin America normally charges for laptop WiFi, it's $5.95 for flights less than 1.5 hours and redeyes, $9.95 for flights between 1.5 hours and 3 hours, and $12.95 for flights longer than 3 hours. For handheld devices (iPhone, Blackberry...), it's $5.95 for flights less than 1.5 hours, and $7.95 for flights of 1.5 hours and more. You can also purchase a 30-day pass for $49.95.

For fares, check out our pages for San Fran, Seattle, New York JFK, Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Santa Ana, San Diego, and Ft Lauderdale.

Categories: Domestic US Fares

Holiday airfares coming down!

Posted by George Hobica on Sunday, October 18, 2009

If you've been watching TV and reading the papers lately, you've seen the dire warnings that peak holiday travel airfares have been marching in only one direction: up. Buy today or you'll pay more tomorrow!

Of course, we at AFWD have dedicated our working lives to tracking airfares, and we know that fares go up and down as airlines test the waters to see how much passengers are willing to pay. Not only do fares go up and down, but the airlines employ sophisticated computer programs that adjust the number of seats at the lowest fares. So one moment there might be just one seat or no seats at the lowest fare between, say, Newark and San Francisco and then next minute there might be 5 seats.

So when the New York Times reported in an October 15 front page article that "Holiday Airfare is Soaring Daily" and a flight departing Nov. 25 and returning Nov. 29 from Newark to San Francisco that was $504 on Sept. 18 was $770 if bought last Thursday, we decided to track that and other routes mentioned in the article to see if they would go down in price.

On Saturday Oct. 17 at 10:46 AM, Newark to San Francisco on those dates was available not for $504 or $770, but rather for $467 round-trip including taxes:

And on Sunday, Oct. 18, as the 9:53 AM screen shot from a Travelocity search below shows, the same route, with nonstops on Continental, is down to $389.20 round-trip, including taxes (which, by the way, if this is your route, we'd suggest buying right now. It's a very decent deal and a far cry from $770 or even $504 round-trip.)

We're not going to beat a dead horse here, and our only point is that if you keep looking (and it only takes a minute to search a fare) you may indeed find that a fare that was out of your reach today has suddenly become quite reasonable tomorrow.

Also, this is not to say that some routes aren't very expensive if you were to search right now, and some, especially to smaller destinations with service by just a couple of airlines, may remain high. But on routes with lots of competition, we may see lower fares in the hours and days ahead.

Categories: Airfare Tips

Holiday fares fluctuate widely, not always in the up direction

Posted by George Hobica on Friday, October 16, 2009

It's that time of year when the media trots out the annual holiday airfare stories. This article on the front page of the New York Times caught our attention. Reading it, you'd think that it's too late to nab decent fares for Thanksgiving. Of course, it depends on what you mean by decent.

According to the Times, "Dilly-dallying, even waiting just a few days, could carry a steep price. Fares, though still lower now than at this time last year, are rising each day, a trajectory that began more than a month ago.

In the last week alone, overall fares for Thanksgiving travel rose 6 percent, according to Bing Travel, part of Microsoft's search engine. Ticket prices for the most popular itinerary, departing Wednesday, Nov. 25, and returning Sunday, Nov. 29, are up 10 percent in the last week.

In recent weeks, some flights have risen even more. From New York, a round-trip American Airlines flight to Chicago that cost $354 on Sept. 14 was $540 on Thursday, a 52 percent jump, according to Yapta.com, which tracks fares.

A JetBlue flight to Orlando that was $524 on Sept. 24 was $614 on Thursday, and a Continental flight from Newark to San Francisco that was $504 on Sept. 18 was $770.

That does not count all the extra fees -- some added just for holiday travel days -- that airlines are charging this year."

For fun, we checked fares on the three examples cited in the above paragraphs, using searches on Travelocity at around 11 AM on Friday, a day after the article was filed.

In all cases, we found that lower fares were available.

New York to Chicago leaving Wednesday Nov 25 and returning Sunday Nov. 29, for example, we found seats at $333 round-trip on American nonstops, even lower than the Sept. 14 fare that Yapta quoted at $354 and much less than $540. Oh, and it's even lower on Southwest at present: $327 round-trip, with no first or second bag fees, on LaGuardia-Midway nonstops. But of course, Yapta doesn't track Southwest's fares or include them in its data.

New York to Orlando: $524 round-trip? $614 round-trip? Nope. $399 round-trip on those dates, including all taxes.

The third example was Newark to San Francisco at $770 round-trip. We found an alternate flight on United for $566 round-trip, including taxes.

Correction posted Oct. 17: And on Saturday morning, a couple of days after the doom and gloom Times article, Newark to San Francisco can be had for $467.80 round-trip with taxes traveling outbound on Nov 25 and returning Nov 29:

Not that these fares are cheap by any means. The airlines are definitely getting a premium for peak holiday travel, as they always do.

And this is not to say that the Times and its sources got the fares wrong when they searched, but it is to say that fares go up and they go down, and seat availability at the lowest fares decreases and increases throughout the day and over several days. We're just afraid that someone reading the Times today might conclude that the game is up if they haven't booked holiday travel yet and they should stop looking for (relative) deals. And that, clearly, is not true.

Categories: Airfare Tips

Today Only! JetBlue's Sample Sale

Posted by Tracy Stewart on Thursday, October 15, 2009

JetBlue is back with another amazing 1-day only Sample Sale. We're talking coast-to-coast fares for as little as $158 round-trip, before taxes. Not bad, right? These deals are valid for travel from October 22 through December 16, on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Fares to/from Florida are valid for southbound travel on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, and for northbound travel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Fares include:

Austin to San Francisco $158 round-trip

Boston to Los Angeles $158 round-trip

Boston to Chicago $118 round-trip

Charlotte to Boston $98 round-trip

Richmond to Boston $88 round-trip

New York to Burlington $78 round-trip

New York to Los Angeles $178 round-trip

Chicago to New York $118 round-trip

Phoenix to New York $178 round-trip

San Diego to New York $178 round-trip

San Francisco to New York $158 round-trip