Airline Ticket Fares

Flying is fun, paying for flying is not! Here's an analysis on why airline ticket fares are so high, should they be so high, and what we can do to get air tickets at reduced rates.

Traveling is an unavoidable thing in today's times, especially since most of our friends and relatives would invariably migrate to places outside the state and even national borders. There will be certainly some visits to be made to your close ones who are staying far. And if you have a well-rooted business that has started sending out branches to foreign shores, then, well… do we really have to discuss how much you will have to travel in that case? Anyways, an average person must be flying once every six months (no citations here, this is purely my guess, and I am sure I am not way off my mark, either!)

But the point is made. Flying is inevitable, whether national or international. You might just as well sit back and enjoy the clouds. But your enjoyment will not be undiluted for sure, because there will be a hefty thought at the back of your mind. And that thought is – how much did the whole trip cost? Certainly, the cost is the most important factor that we need to keep in mind here. If it were not for the costs, we would have been flying for ever, but then the high costs of flying (economical costs!) do pull us down a huge way.

Why are flying costs so unearthly high (no pun intended)? Does flying really deserve the four figure ticket fares? Is there any way to reduce these monstrously high airline ticket fares? Let's seek out these answers one by one.

Airline Ticket Fares – Why Are They So High?

Quite simply put, airline ticket fares are high because they are running big costs in flying you from one place to another. The fuel burnt in three hours of flying would be enough to fuel all the cars on New York's busiest street for a day. And then there is the regular maintenance of the airplane, which is a huge cost in itself. There are the assorted people who will take you safely through the flight who need to be paid well so that they remain happy and perform good work. There's really a motley crew of people who help you fly – right from the ticket issuing staff to the people who check your baggage to the stewards, the pilots and the pretty airhostesses. They need payment too, and good payment at that.

You must not forget the pampering also that you get on a flight. Whether you need to be pampered or not, when you are on a flight, you are an esteemed person and you will get the royal treatment. But remember, it is paid royal treatment. The price comes from your airline ticket fare. Each and every amenity that you see in the plane requires money, and that’s where the payment goes so high.

And finally, we need to mention that flight carriers do maintain their élan. Even the most economic of economy flights will want to take you up in style. Needless to say, the money for this added flair comes from your credit card.

Airline Ticket Fares – Do They Deserve To Be So High?

Ahem, ahem! I will surely be ruffling some airline tail feathers here. But the truth is evident, so it's not much of a trespass. The truth is that most airlines, even some of the biggest names in the business, charge rates that are obscenely high to the costs that they are bearing. Agreed they are flying you in style with almost regal luxury and bearing huge costs for fuel and crew, but they are also taking anywhere between 200 and 500 passengers up at one go. Sometimes even more than that! So, the airlines are definitely covering their costs.

And they are earning much more. Most of the high priced airline ticket fares would do a neat profit for the carrier even if the ticket prices of the airlines were slashed by half. Or, if they flew a flight with only half the number of passengers of their full capacity, still they would make a profit. This is not true of all airlines though.