Understanding "Airline Jargon" to Assist You in Uncovering the Absolute Lowest Air Fares!

Welcome to the "FAQs - how to secure the lowest air fares - an airline terminology glossary" portion of our Web Site. Have you ever felt airlines speak a completely different language than you and we? Here's a quick reference to some of the more popular terms/"creative" ticketing techniques you're likely to encounter dealing with the commercial airline industry. In order to help you navigate through the material made a part of this page, we've created the following clickable terms' menu:

"Add on" Fares - A negotiated [and thus similar to a "contract"] "discounted" compared to "published" "add on" to a "bulk" fare available to a reseller of air seats who purchases many seats "in bulk."

The Air Fare Anomaly - The phenomena which recognizes that: a) the closest/most direct/non-stop routes from/to A/B don't necessarily result in the lowest air fares; and, b) the fares from/to A/B don't necessarily mirror those from/to B/A, especially when there is a connecting flight through C!

The Airline Excise Tax - An additional tax imposed by the United States [and now other] Government[s - generally 7˝% of the base fare plus $2.25 systematically increasing in 2002 to $3.00/segment] on all airline tickets. In addition, there: a) is a $12.00 international facility use tax assessed for all taxable air transportation either commencing/terminating in the United States; and, b) are local airport Passenger Facility Charges ["pfcs"]. The airline excise taxes collected are deposited into a national airport and airway improvement trust fund theoretically available accessible by all United States airports. Airline excise taxes are added to the base cost of all airline tickets which involve commercial travel to/from/through the United States.

Airport Ticket Office - An "on-airport" airline location that in addition to other functions issues tickets for travel on a specific airline.

Using Alternate Airports - A "creative ticketing" technique exploiting lower fares to common destinations originating from different or alternative airports relatively close to one another (i.e., the fares from/to San Francisco ["SFO"]/Oakland ["OAK"]/San Jose ["SJC"] and Salt Lake ["SLC"] or Denver ["DEN"]; or, La Guardia ["LGA"]/John F. Kennedy ["JFK"]/Islip ["ISP"]/Newark ["EWR"] and St. Louis ["STL"] or Minneapolis-St. Paul ["MSP"]; or, Reagan ["DCA"]/Dulles ["IAD"]/Baltimore ["BWI"] and Chicago ["ORD"] or Dallas-Fort Worth ["DFW"]; or, Boston ["BOS"]/Providence, Rhode Island ["PVD"]/Manchester, New Hampshire ["MHT"] and Cleveland ["CLE"] or Cinncinatti ["CVG"]; aren't necessarily the same even though each trio [or in the case of New York quartet] of departure airports is located within close proximity to one another).

APEX aka "Advanced Purchase EXcursion Fare" - One of the lowest priced but most restrictive types of tickets.

The Arbitrage Effect - The phenomena [another "creative ticketing" technique] which recognizes the lowest air fares between points A and B can differ depending upon: a) where air tickets are issued/purchased; and/or, b) whether travel is from/to: i) points A and B; or, ii) vice versa.

ATB aka "Automated Ticket and Boarding Pass" - A combination ticket/boarding pass usually coded with a magnetic strip.

"Back-to-Back" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique which calls for two sets of overlapping round trip tickets to be issued to fulfill [i.e., "bypass"] a carrier's Saturday night stopover requirements. The technique ends up lowering the bottom line cost where the combination of fares for two overlapping travel itineraries is lower than the single fare travel itinerary the passenger is actually interested in purchasing. Both travel itineraries involve round trip travel from/to A/B. Itinerary 1 is ticketed to depart point A on the passenger's intended departure date, but to return from point B on a different [i.e., later] date than that the passenger intends to return anytime after the following Saturday. Itinerary 2 is ticketed to originated from/depart point B on the passenger's intended return date, and to return to point A on a different [i.e., later] date than that the passenger intends to return via itinerary 1 [i.e., itinerary 1's point B]. The passenger uses the outbound legs of travel of both travel itineraries [i.e., from points A and B]. The return legs of travel of both itineraries [i.e., from points A and B] either become throwaways, or if the passenger plans carefully, they can be used for a second "free" round trip [i.e., the return legs of travel from both sets of round trip tickets are combined to create a second round trip itinerary].

"Backhauling" - A "creative ticketing" technique which exploits the principle, "sometimes one must take a step backwards in order to take two steps forward [circa Nikita Kruschev]!" Instead of traveling in one continuous direction between points A and B, in order to take advantage of a lower fare between points C and B the passenger first travels backwards from/to points A/C. He/she then connects to a flight from point C which then travels forward to point B. This is really a derivative of the "alternate airport" technique.

Blackouts - Holiday, major event and seasonally heavy travel dates when specific discounted/promotional/special sale fares are not offered for sale/available/honored. Examples include Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years.

Bucket Shops - A term originating in Great Britain describing agencies which sell deeply discounted consolidator and wholesale airline tickets [mostly international]. Some of the best known "bucket shops" are located in London, Paris and Amsterdam.

"Bulk" Fares - A negotiated [and thus similar to a "contract"] "discounted" compared to "published" fare available to a reseller of air seats who purchases many seats "in bulk."

"Bulkhead" Seating - The first row of seats in any commercial aircraft's "coach" class of service cabin. Bulkhead seats usually offer more leg room because there isn't a row of similarly configured "coach" seats in front. Similarly, there's no tray table to  fold down from/nor storage underneath a rear seat in front of you.

Bumping aka "Denied Boarding" - The voluntary or involuntary removal by an airline of a confirmed passenger from an overbooked flight.
 

Capacity Controls - Artificial limitations imposed by a carrier's automated computers on the number of air seats offered at differing fares on a given flight, generally based upon the effect of an yield management analysis.

The Carriage Contract - The legal contract a passenger enters into with a carrier [which includes all of the carrier's rules, terms, conditions and limitations] whenever the passenger is ticketed for a flight [the carriage contract is incorporated by reference as though set forth more fully into the body of the passenger's ticket receipt].

"Charter" Flights - Public charters fly regularly between specified cities, usually at fares which are lower than their regularly scheduled commercial counterparts. Private charters are usually used by a tour operator in conjunction with an all inclusive vacation package to a specific destination.

"Circle" Ticketing - Similar to "open jaw" and "triangle" ticketing, a "creative ticketing" technique which allows a visit to more than one city while continuing one's "circle" of travel itinerary in a single direction which bypasses an airline's full one-way "point-to-point" fare[s (this technique is used for a low cost stopover where geographical limitations don't permit "open jaw" travel at a lower fare)]. Example: New York ["LGA"] to Dallas ["DFW"] in one direction; DFW back to LGA on the return; "circling" through Denver ["DEN"]. The stopover in DEN causes the round trip fare from/to LGA/DFW to increase, however, by less than when one combines the "point-to-point" one way fares from/to: a) LGA/DFW; plus b) DFW/DEN; and, c) DEN/LGA. Similar to "open jaw" pricing, typically the passenger realizes the benefit of a combination of one-half of the lowest round trip fares from/to each air gateway.

City Codes - Three-letter designations used by airlines, air traffic control, baggage handling personnel and others to identify specific worldwide airports [no two airports use the same three letters (you will note some of these codes are even used on this page)]. You should always check the city code the baggage handler or gate agent puts on your luggage to make sure it will be correctly routed.

City Pairs - The originating and destination cities [expressed in city codes] which together comprise a round trip flight itinerary.

City Ticket Office - As contrasted with an airport ticket office, an "off-airport" airline location that issues tickets for travel on a specific airline.

Class of Service - Similar to fare basis in that every fare is given a code by its carrier preceded by a letter which corresponds to/identifies its precise "class of service". Most flights offer two "classes of service" ["economy" or "coach" and "first"], and the larger bodied aircraft generally add a third ["business"]. When looking for the lowest air fares, one must search out the "fare basis" in the lowest "class of service" [i.e., "economy class"] which represents the airline's lowest priced sale or promotional fares.

Code Sharing - Where two or more airlines fly a common route under a single airline's name. One of the carriers may offer a lower service level; or, flights via commuter carriers/airline partners [this is why you will see an United Airlines flight "operated by" Air Canada; or, a Northwest Airlines flight "operated by" KLM; or, an Alitalia flight "operated by" Continental Airlines]. The Department of Transportation ["DOT"] mandates that passengers be informed whenever they will be flying on "code shared" flights.

"Commuter" Aircraft - Aircraft configured to seat 62/less passengers. Commuter airlines may be affiliated with major airlines [many use the word "express" in their names], but operate under separate rules and regulations.

"Companion" Fares - Special inclusive pricing based upon two or more people traveling together on an identical travel itinerary. These fares can be called different names such as "friends and family;" "fly free;" etc.

"Connecting" Flights - Requires one or more change of planes to/from another flight. Because of today's airline "hub" and "spoke" transportation system, the vast majority of flights these days connect somewhere.

"Consolidator" Fares - A third party who purchases air seats in "bulk" from the airlines at reduced pricing, and then in principle sells those seats at a "discount" versus the airline's direct pricing.

"Contract" Fares - A negotiated [and thus similar to a "bulk"] "discounted" compared to "published" fare available to anyone who negotiates the price of air seats purchased from a carrier.

"Convention" [aka "Meeting"] Fares - A special fare offered by the airlines when passengers originate from a number of different cities serviced by an airline all traveling to a "meeting" or "convention" located close to a common air gateway. Similar to "group" fares, a special "discount" versus ordinary "published" fares is sometimes offered to convention/meeting attendees.

"Creative" Ticketing - Examples include: a) taking advantage of the: i) air fare anomaly created by using "alternate" airports; and, ii) arbitrage effect; b) "back-to-backs;" c) "backhauling;" d) "free stopovers;" e) "circle," "triangle" and "open jaw;"; f) "last flight in/first flight out;" g) "ghost seat;" h) "cross-border;" i) "hidden city;" and, j) "split" ticketing. Warning: many of these "techniques" are explicitly prohibited by: a) airlines' carriage contracts; and, b) the appointment contracts most travel agents are required to enter into with the airlines; c) because by their nature they circumvent the airlines' global fare structure. Some airlines have actually sued agents who knowingly exploit these techniques threatening: a) reimbursement of the loss of revenue; and/or b) termination of their appointment. Therefore: a) the threat of enforcement has a "chilling effect" upon an agent's efforts on a passenger's behalf to save money on air fares; and as a consequence, b) many agents will not issue tickets which subject them to possible airline retaliation.

"Cross-Border" Ticketing - An arbitrage/"creative ticketing" technique used to take advantage of international tickets priced at lower fares or more favorable currency exchange rates in a different countries.

CRS aka "Computer Reservation Systems" - A wide area network of airline reservations computers interactively linked to one another.

Deregulation - The 1978 law ["the Airline Deregulation Act" aka "ADA"] that phased out the Civil Aeronautics Board ["CAB"] as well as some government regulation of routes and fares.

Deviations - An individual's change or "deviation" in travel itinerary compared to that of the remainder of a group.

"Direct" Flights - Similar to "connecting" flights, "direct" flights make one or more stops along the way from/to A and B [they may even require a change of planes on code shared flights]. Unlike "connecting" flights, the flight number remains the same. "Direct" flights are not to be confused with non-stop flights which make no stops nor connections from/to A and B.

Double Booking - Two sets of reservations for the same person on the same exact routing and date. If the airlines' computers detect a "double booking" [which they will], without notification they will automatically cancel the earlier reservation entered.
 

Excursion Fares - Similar to APEX fares, lower priced roundtrip fares with more restrictive minimum and maximum stay and advance purchase requirements.

"Exit Row" Seating - That bank of seating on an aircraft adjacent to an aircraft's "exit" doors. In "coach class" of service these are the preferred seats to secure inasmuch as they generally offer the greatest leg room [so it's easier for passengers to deplane in case of an emergency]. On the other hand, due to their configuration some exit row seats don't recline. Although the airlines claim these seats aren't filled until the day of travel by gate agents, we've discovered reservation supervisors are sometimes able to designate these seats far in advance of travel; especially to frequent travelers.

Fare Basis - Similar to "class of service," every fare is given a code by its carrier represented by a combination of letters/numbers which corresponds to the fare's precise terms/conditions [such as applicable days of travel, advance purchase requirements, etc.]. The code is generally preceded by a letter [see the letters below] which identifies the "class of service." When looking for the lowest air fares, one must search out the "class of service" which represents the airline's lowest priced sale or promotional fares [for instance, "L" class represents Delta Airlines' lowest fares; "M" class represents American and Southwest Airlines' lowest fares; "Q" class represents Canadian, Northwest/KLM and Continental Airlines' lowest fares; and, "V" or "W" class represents United Airlines' lowest fares].

Fare War - The generic term for a deeply discounted air seat [aka "promotional"] sale. Most major carriers are reluctant to give up market share so when a competitor announces an air seat sale, all carriers servicing those routes will "match" or even lower pricing. It is this one-upmanship from several competing carriers which leads to the "war."

Gate Agent Discretion - Unbelievably most gate agents have discretion to deviate essentially all of an airline's arcane rules. The practice is called "gate agent discretion."

Gateway City - An airline's point of entry into a particular country.

"Ghost Seat" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique that allows you to secure more seating area in "coach class" of service for a fraction of the cost of "business" or "first" class of service. Simply stated, instead of purchasing one low cost air seat your purchase two. Or if you are traveling with a companion, the two of you purchase three low cost air seats. This technique may be especially useful for: a) long haul flights [such as those of 7 or more hours]; or, b) during peak season where every seat is apt to be booked. Although the technique won't give you preferred boarding, more flight attendant service nor premium meals [although it may earn you twice as much frequent flyer mileage credit], with a little bit of twisting and turning you will realize more room. If you are a business traveler whose company disallows your typical $5,000.00 "business" class of service ticket, perhaps it may spring for two adjacent $300.00 "coach" class of service tickets instead? Of course whether or not you are traveling on business, if you are unable to reserve adjacent seating or miss the check-in deadline, the technique may be self-defeating.

Group - Generally 10/more passengers traveling on the exact same dates/routing/itinerary/flights.

"Group" Fares - A "discounted" compared to "published" fare, and/or one with relaxed rule restrictions [such as ticketing within "x" hours of making a reservation] usually available to groups traveling together on the same travel itinerary. Any departure from the group's travel itinerary becomes a deviation.

"Hidden City" Fares - A "creative ticketing" technique that involves booking a "connecting" flight (usually one-way) from/to cities A/B with a planned deplaning/stopover in C in order to take advantage of a lower fare. Example: Mega Airline offers a published fare from/to SLC/Idaho Falls ["IDA"] which is lower than the fare from/to SLC/Jackson Hole ["JAC"]. The airline offers a "direct" [as opposed to non-stop] flight from/to SLC/IDA with a "connection" on the same aircraft in JAC. Those passengers ticketed to JAC will be charged an higher fare than those on the same flight ticketed onto IDA, even though both sets of passengers may deplane. Thus JAC becomes an "hidden city" for the passenger: a) who is ticketed to IDA at a lower fare; b) but only intends to travel as far as JAC. But please beware of the potential adverse reservation cancellation consequences of taking advantage of this technique.

"Hub" and "Spoke" System - In today's world of airline deregulation, this is the preferred routing utilized by most major commercial airlines. Basically an "hub" is a central connection airport for a particular airline. Passengers are first routed into/out of, and thereafter from/to that "hub" to/from their initial/final destination/departure airports ["spokes"]. Example: passenger flies from/to points A/B. He/she will first be routed from/to points A/C [point C being somewhere between points A/B]. Thereafter, he/she will "connect" to a flight from/to points C/B. Points A and B are "spokes" in an air transportation bicycle wheel; point C is the wheel's "hub." It is possible under the foregoing example that either/both points A/B may also be an airline's "hub."

Interline Connections - A change of planes and airlines. If there is no baggage interline agreement between the two airlines [a number of the major commercial airlines shun Southwest Airlines and thus, have no interline agreement], you won't be able to automatically "check through" your baggage from/to your departing/arriving airports [you will have to physically pick-up/re-check your baggage at the point of connection].

  "Internet" aka "E" Fares - A "discounted" compared to "published" fare available only to direct bookings made by passengers over an airline's web site.

"Last Flight In/First Flight Out" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique which offers two benefits to finding a low cost fare where because of distance or your personal schedule all such fares on the flights you want are already sold out. Assume you originate from the West Coast and need to be on the East Coast for a meeting at let's say !0:00 o'clock A.M. next Tuesday. Your Monday schedule is full and you need every available moment on the West Coast. The first Tuesday departure is at 7:00 o'clock A.M.; a time that makes it impossible for you to be on time for your meeting. The last Monday departure is at 7:00 o'clock P.M., but: a) this is too early to accommodate your Monday schedule; and, b) even if it were not you don't relish the idea of checking into an East Coast hotel at 4:00 o'clock A.M.

Using this ticketing technique you book the last flight on Monday night departing at 11:00 o'clock P.M.  You "layover" at an airport hotel at the airline's hub closer to the East Coast [such as CVG, STL, ORD, Detroit ["DET"], MSP, Memphis ["MEM"], etc.], get some semblance of a night's rest and then take the first morning flight [leaving at 7:00 o'clock A.M.] to the East Coast. Even though technically this routing encompasses what would otherwise be an impermissible "stopover," for reasons similar to "itinerary stopovers" it is allowed by the airlines as long as you connect to the first available flight the next morning continuing onto your ultimate destination.

You can also use this ticketing technique when due to yield management and capacity controls lower priced fares to your ultimate destination are already sold out. Let's say you want to fly from/to SFO/BOS but the lowest priced available seat for the flight you want costs $700.00. Check the fares taking the last flight of the day, especially if it entails a stopover somewhere along the way [especially because most travelers would never consider an overnight stay for a connecting flight] as long. If the difference in fares is more than the cost of an hotel room at a connecting airport [keep in mind rates at hotels near most hub airports are usually much lower than those in major metropolitan city centers], you have just saved yourself some money!

"Mistake" Fares - Fares loaded into an airline's CRS by mistake [generally as a result of an encoding error]. Fares are generally loaded into an airline's computer no more than 331 days prior to departure [although when they're loaded for a longer travel "window" they're a "mistake"]. Once loaded, they become subject to change. Sometimes "mistakes" are made when fares are changed. Example: in latter 1997 America-West Airlines made a mistake inputting the expiration date for a changed fare. Instead of typing in the year "1998," someone typed in the year "1999." Because airlines are sheep, the competition soon replicated the "mistake." Although it was soon rectified by America-West, it took 12 hours for the competition to react. Thus for a period of about 15 hours consumers were able to book/ticket discounted travel not destined to take place for 1˝ or more years! 

Here are some other examples: several years ago American Airlines initiated a fare war from/to the United States/the United Kingdom. The round trip fare from/to the East Coast/London's Heathrow Airport ["LHR"] actually got down to an almost unbelievable [at least for then] $199.00. But when it came to inputting a similar fare from the West Coast, a "mistake" was made. Although the fare was supposed to be $199.00 in each direction [for a total of $398.00], instead it was entered for round trip travel [i.e., the same as the round trip fare from the East Coast]. For about 10 hours some very, very lucky West Coast travelers were able to pick-off $199.00 round trip fares to Europe!

In early 2001 United Airlines made a mistake loading a $24.98 SFO/Paris ["CDG"] round trip fare into its CRS. Before the airline discovered/corrected its error, about 150 very, very lucky passengers were able to ticket this itinerary!

In early 1999 Alaska Airlines made an inputting "mistake" for round trip fares from/to either Seattle ["SEA"]/Portland ["PDX"] and Las Vegas ["LAS"]. The fare loaded into its CRS was an unbelievable $0.00 [that's right, zero]! Before the airline discovered/corrected its error, about 300 very, very lucky passengers were able to ticket this itinerary for about $9.00 round trip [basically the airline excise tax and applicable pfcs]!

"Narrow Bodied" Aircraft - An aircraft configured with but a single center aisle.

"Non-Stop" Flight - Goes directly from/to A/B [i.e., the ticketed destination] without making a stop. Not to be confused with a "direct" flight which can have a stop [without a change of aircraft].

" Open" Ticketing - Good for transportation between specific points with no specification of dates of travel/reservation.

"Open Jaw" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique allowing round trip travel to/return/lower pricing from two different cities with the fare based upon the combination of ˝ of each round trip fare. Example: the outbound leg of travel is SFO/JFK. The return leg of travel is BWI/SFO. The passenger uses his/her own "surface travel" to go from/to JFK/BWI. The round trip fare is calculated at ˝ of the round trip fare from/to SFO/JFK plus ˝ of the round trip fare from/to SFO/BWI. Where the fares are identical, so is the passenger's!

A "circle" or "triangle" fare is a derivation of the "open jaw" travel itinerary theme in that the single, all inclusive, reduced fare includes the leg of travel from/to JFK/BWI.

"Overbooked" Flight - Air travel is one of the few businesses we're familiar with where a merchant is permitted to sell a limited supply product more than once [i.e., a product it does not have available to sell] without being sued for unfair trade practices [that product is an air seat on a given flight]. When an airline sells more air seats than the maximum seating on a given flight, a) it has "overbooked" the flight; and, b) ticketed passengers are bumped!

Pax - An airline's abbreviation for the word "passengers."

PFCs aka "Passenger Facility Charges" - An additional tax [in addition to the airline excise tax]/user fee imposed by an airport [not to exceed $3.00/airport/$12.00 total] earmarked to fund specific improvements at that particular airport. "Pfcs" are added to the price of most airline tickets.

"Phantom" Phares [or Fares] - In part due to the air fare anomaly run amuck, sometimes an airline's CRS will display a "published" fare either from/to a pair of cities/routing the carrier doesn't actually service/offer! Since in the real world securing this service from this particular carrier can't take place, the fare is called a "phantom fare" [or what we've coined a "phare"] to the carrier's "phantom city." A twist on this phenomena is that sometimes the carrier will actually offer service from/to "phantom" points A and B [the latter typically being a foreign connecting point], but because of governmental regulations it isn't allowed to legally sell any seats. Example: a carrier offers service from/to Miami ["MIA"] and Buenős Aires ["BUE"] with a connection in Santiago, Chile ["SCL"]. Although passengers originating in MIA may disembark the flight in SCL, the carrier is prevented by law from accepting new passengers for the continuation flight from/to SCL/BUE.

"Point-to-Point" Fares - A straightforward generally non-stop travel fare from/to points A/B. Where a carrier a) doesn't offer a "published" through fare from/to points A/B which connects through point C; b) but does offer a "published" fare from/to points C/B; it will c) combine its "published" fares from/to points A/C and C/B, the combination in price being "point-to-point" [see split ticketing for a discussion of the exact opposite (generally lower priced) technique].

Reservation "Cancellation" - When airline reservations are made directly with an airline, many will offer a "courtesy hold" prior to ticketing of anywhere from 24 - 72 hours [Note: even though the routing/air seat may be reserved, the fare is not - quoted fares are never guaranteed prior to ticketing]. If the reservation is not converted into a physical ticket within the "hold" period, it automatically cancels. But there can be more disturbing examples of reservation cancellations after ticketing [see below].

Reservation "Confirmation" - Especially on international flights, a carrier may require telephonic "confirmation" of a passenger's reservation 48 - 72 hours prior to departure. If "confirmation" doesn't take place, the reservation is automatically canceled.

Reservation "Deviations" - When a passenger fails to check in for any leg of ticketed travel, the balance of his/her travel itinerary [even though paid for/ticketed] is automatically canceled by the airlines' computers. This can have a disastrous effect upon the balance of a passenger's ticketed travel interrupted by his/her exercise of a "creative ticketing" technique [see hidden cities and stopovers].
 

Itinerary Segment - A portion of a more expansive air travel itinerary.

"Senior" Fares - A special "discounted" compared to "published" fare [usually amounting to a 10% discount from "published" fares] offered by most airlines to passengers over a certain minimum age [usually 65 although sometimes it can be as low as 60]. Most senior fares permit a "companion" of any age to travel with the senior at the senior's special discounted fare.

"Split" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique involving purchase of two lower priced air tickets for segments [i.e., points A to C and C to B], the combination of which results in travel from/to an high price destination [A/B] usually dominated by one non-stop carrier. The combination of fares for the two round trip segments is by definition lower than the through fare from/to points A/B [see point-to-point fares for a discussion of the exact opposite technique].

"Standby" Travel - Wait listed travel with no confirmed reservation. "Stand-by" travel normally requires pre-purchasing of a ticket. Long gone are the days where one can fly "stand-by" on any kind of ticket. Notwithstanding, most gate agents have discretion [interestingly called "gate agent discretion"] to honor "stand-by" travel. Some airlines allow "stand-by" travel on a space available basis if the passenger travels on the precise routing he's/she's ticketed for, however, earlier than the date/time he's/she's ticketed to travel. Others allow "stand-by" travel on a space available basis if the passenger travels anytime on the precise day he's/she's scheduled to travel as long as the precise routing is adhered to. Others permit no deviations whatsoever.

Itinerary "Stopover" - A "stop" in travel/physical deplaning at point C in one's contiguous travel from/to points A/B. By definition an interruption in the middle of one's travel that either exceeds 4 hours/the next regularly scheduled departure from point C to one's particular B, is defined by the airlines as a "stopover." Generally stopovers destroy lower cost round trip excursion fares, converting them into generally higher priced point-to-point fares [however, you can mitigate some of the higher costs associated with "stopovers" by "circle" or "triangle" ticketing]. On the other hand, a forced stopover that occurs within the 4 hour "window" is perfectly permissible without destroying the lower priced round trip through fare you've successfully negotiated [thus constituting a "Free Stopover"]. Example: Hyper Airline offers several flights/day from/to Venice, Italy ["VCE"]/Amsterdam, Holland ["AMS"]. But it offers only one flight/day from/to AMS/SFO at approximately 11:00 A.M. If one is ticketed on a later "connecting" flight from/to VCE/AMS which arrives after the AMS/SFO flight has already departed for the day, he/she is forced to "stopover" in AMS [without being assessed an higher fare] until the following day's single flight from/to AMS. Some commentators refer to this phenomena as the "last flight in/first flight out" technique.

"Free" Stopover - A "creative ticketing" technique which forces the passenger to misconnect, creating a "stopover" in his/her connection city until the next connecting flight takes place the following day. Why take advantage of this creative ticketing technique? Maybe low cost fares from/to your originating/connecting city aren't available until the following day which is when you want to travel [see you depart earlier]? By traveling the day before and spending the night at a lower cost airport hotel, you are able to circumvent capacity control/Saturday night stopover problems. Or maybe the airline's schedule from/to your originating/destination city gets you in too late the following day to make an important meeting? Let's say you need to be in New York City for a 10:00 A.M. meeting. If you're already at a connecting city in the same time zone the night before [perhaps much later in the evening (like 11:00 P.M.)], then you can leave for your destination city earlier the next morning and still arrive in time to make your meeting.

"Through" Fare - An all inclusive generally lower priced fare from/to points A/B, even though there may be one or more stops/connections at point[s] C along the way. In theory, a "through fare" should be priced lower than the sum of its parts, but this isn't always the case [see "point-to-point" fares and "split" ticketing for discussions of the exact opposite phenomena].

"Throwaway" Tickets - The by-product of the "creative ticketing" technique known as "back-to-backs." The unused tickets left over when one purchases/uses "back-to-back" tickets to secure a lower priced single travel itinerary are rendered useless, and simply "thrown away."

"Tier" Pricing - Another name for "yield management" [i.e., an adjustment/allocation of fares within a given aircraft (via different "classes of service") based upon supply and anticipated demand adjusted by the actions of competitors/historical travel patterns]. In part this phenomena explains why two passengers can be sitting next to one another on a given flight, each having paid a different fare.

"Triangle" Ticketing - A "creative ticketing" technique allowing the passenger to visit more than one city while continuing his/her "straight line" travel itinerary as part of a "triangle" [very similar to "circle" ticketing, however,] without having to pay for a stopover. Example: Los Angeles ["LAX"] to Honolulu ["HNL"] in one direction; HNL to San Diego ["SAN"] on the return; continuing onto LAX after a stopover in SAN. Or on the return, travel from/to HNL/SEA with a stopover in SEA; continuing from/to SEA/San Francisco ["SFO"] with a stopover in SFO; and, continuing from/to SFO/LAX! No additional cost stopover travel up and/or down the West Coast [one leg of the triangle] in a single direction until reaching your departure/return air gateway becomes explicitly permissible.

"Trick" Fares - Fares intentionally loaded into an airline's CRS to "trick" a competitor into matching a "below cost" routing. Airlines no longer directly talk to one-another about their fares [ever since former American Airlines CEO Jerry Crandall was allegedly caught on tape "price fixing"]. So they talk to one another via computers sending subliminal "messages" in the form of fare "changes." Airlines have been known to "trick" the competition into offering fares below their cost, intended to accomplish nothing more than contributing to a competitor's financial difficulties [aka "predatory pricing"]. Here's how "trick fares" work.

A below cost fare gets introduced into an airline's CRS; the competition follows suit because they are nothing more than sheep; the initiator of the "trick" then withdraws the fare; and, by the time you and I learn about it, the competition's left "holding the bag!" Of course if the public is able to ticket a "trick" fare before it is withdrawn, it is the winner!

Wait List - An holding pattern for ticketed passengers without confirmed reservations. Tickets become confirmed as space becomes/is made available.

"Wide Body" Aircraft - An aircraft configured with more than one [usually two] center aisles.

Yield Management - A computerized tracking system and adjustment of fares based upon supply and anticipated demand adjusted by the actions of competitors/historical patterns [another name for "tier" pricing]. The idea is to generate the highest revenue from a single aircraft on a single flight filling every possible seat at different individual fares

Conclusion. So now as you can see, if you care about the cost of your next out-of-state ski/snowboard trip, you want to be able to communicate intelligently with the airlines using their own jargon!

If you're interested in: a) our other contra trip philosophies which will save you money/deliver greater value; and/or b) learning more about who we are and how we can offer you lower snowrider trip prices; then c) won't you please take a few moments to browse through our other linked pages and pricing to learn why you should join us on our next ski/snowboard safari to your favorite worldwide snowrider destination; and, d)
 

So What Are You Waiting For?

Thanks for your interest in Skiing for Smarten, and our affordably priced ski/snowboard safaris. We look forward to skiing/snowboarding with you next season at your favorite worldwide snowrider venue!

© Aaron L. Katz, 1995-2001 [Revised Sunday, April 01, 2001]

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