More Changes in Airfare

Traveling via air is ALWAYS a tedious hassle. I saw this article today about new rules pertaining to passengers who get "bumped" from their flight. This means that someone has to give up their seat, and are usually compensated. Now, passengers who are bumped will be receiving more money than they used to. . Now, if you arrive within two hours, you'll get double the value of your ticket, up to $650. If it's more than two hours, you'll get four times the value, up to $1,300. While this may seem like a wonderful idea to most, let me tell you from experience- it IS NOT.

I was traveling with my family a few years back and got stuck in Dallas, TX due to our seats being bumped from the flight. I remember my father doing everything he could to prevent this from happening but the airline just would not budge. We had to stay overnight in Dallas, and our entire itinerary was affected because of it. While there are always volunteers, the people usually getting bumped are not by choice.

While reading this article, Brett Snyder talks about how airlines overbook their flights based off of statistics that show how many people do not wind up coming. This seems so beyond ridiculous to me! Why would you schedule 150 seats, when a plane only has 130? Yes, it reduces airfare, but at the end of the day, doesn't this seem like a bigger hassle than it's worth?? Trying to find volunteers to give up their seats, and then having to bump unwilling passengers off the flight delays the take-off process. Everyone has somewhere they must be, and now all the passengers are agitated. Hmmm, I think I'd rather pay a higher fare in order to avoid the annoyance. This makes me wonder, why are airlines not thinking in these terms? The aggravated customers who have a delayed flight because the airline has to get rid of passengers, may not return to this same airline next time they fly. In essence, airlines are making this an unpleasant experience for their customers. I have seen this happen almost every time I've gone to the airport, and luckily I've only gotten bumped one time. I really believe that airlines should reconsider their booking policies. While it keeps the airfare cheap, is it worth the risk of angry customers?


http://www.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/04/25/airlines.bumping.gets.lucrative/index.html?hpt=T2