airline ticket prices news stories on Newser

Best Time to Buy Your Flight Ticket Is ...

Neal Colgrass — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 07:32:15 CST

Flying anytime soon? With any luck your trip is a month and a half from now—because a new study says travelers can find the lowest airfares 6 weeks before flying, the Los Angeles Times reports. The price difference: 6% lower than average, according to a company that analyzed millions...

Most Expensive US Airport to Fly Out of Is...

Kate Schwartz — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 09:45:07 CST

Memphis, Tenn., is no place for thrifty travelers, or at least not those who prefer the open sky to the open road. The average price of a ticket at the Memphis International Airport is the highest among the top 100 largest airports in the US, according to a report released...

Qantas Offers Free Tickets to Grounded Fliers

Neal Colgrass — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 15:15:05 CST

You may be eligible for free tickets if last year's Qantas airline shutdown left you stranded, the BBC reports. Last November, Qantas grounded its entire fleet —and left travelers stuck in 22 cities—after a mid-air engine explosion forced an emergency landing in Singapore. Now the airline is offering free...

Best Airfare Deals Are Now Tweeted, Emailed

Jane Yager — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:07:05 CST

The latest airfare deals aren't online or at travel agencies—they're targeted promotional fares, being emailed and tweeted to customers who sign up to receive them or who enroll in frequent-flier programs. These under-the-radar offers, an inexpensive form of advertising increasingly popular with recession-battered airlines, range from 10% discounts to...

Ryanair Passengers May Stand for Cheapest Tix

Mary Papenfuss — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 04:22:48 CDT

Passengers who really want to save money on Ryanair may soon be able to purchase "standing room only" tickets on the discount airline's flights, reports the Sun. Under the plan, passengers would huddle about "bar stools" with seat belts. Ryanair officials have already talked to Boeing about designing new planes...

New Budget Airline Launches With 1 Plane, $9 Seats

Katherine Thompson — Wed, 27 May 2009 09:44:04 CDT

The founder of the short-lived discount airline Skybus thinks conditions are right for a second attempt at adding service to less-used regional airports, the Chicago Tribune reports. JetAmerica will follow the model of European budget carriers like Ryanair, offering a handful of seats for $9 and charging for services like...

Ryanair Hits Low-Tech Flyers With $60 Fee

Sam Biddle — Mon, 18 May 2009 16:45:00 CDT

Perhaps inspired by airlines banking hundreds of millions of dollars in bag fees last year, discount European carrier Ryanair is introducing new baggage check fees, BlackBook reports. Ryanair customers will have to pony up a $7.50 fee to check in online, and pay a further $60—termed a “boarding...

American Readies Piecemeal Pricing

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:18:02 CDT

American Airlines is about to accelerate the trend of breaking the cost of a trip into an airfare plus many smaller fees. Starting next year, American plans to imitate the a la carte pricing structure pioneered by Air Canada, airline officials say. There are likely to be a few basic...

Fuel Costs Bump Up Budget Airfares

Rob Quinn — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 03:43:48 CDT

Rock-bottom airfares are going the way of the zeppelin as fuel prices continue their climb into the stratosphere, the New York Times reports. Some budget carriers have gone bust. Others have hiked fares and begun to woo more business travelers, blurring the line between big carriers and discount operations. Southwest...