Do you know how to book airline tickets at the lowest possible cost when traveling abroad?
Normally, you would take a direct flight that allows you to reach your destination without changing planes, but by using a transit flight with a connection in another country on the way, you can book a ticket at a much lower price.
You may wonder, “How can it be cheaper?
For example, a direct flight to France (Paris) costs $3,500.
However, if it is a transit flight, the price drops to $550.
Although it will take twice as long because of the connection you will have to make on the way in Moscow, etc. I think this is a very good deal for students and others who have time to spare.
However, here is a question.
If you choose Moscow as your destination, will you be able to fly for less than $550?
I checked and found that it would cost close to $900 for the same flight.
In this article, I would like to explain how this cheaper price is achieved.
Airplane prices are not distance-based
Most transportation systems, such as trains and buses, determine fares based on distance.
This is simple and easy to understand because the farther away you are, the higher the fare.
However, airplane fares are not determined by distance, but by demand.
In other words, routes that sell well are sold at a higher price, whereas routes that do not sell well are sold at a lower price.
Direct flights are sold at higher prices because there is a greater demand for them.
In contrast, connecting flights are sold at lower prices because many people prefer to avoid them where possible.
In this way, supply and demand are the keys to success.
Do airlines lose money?
Selling connecting flights at a lower price seems to cause the airlines to lose money.
Indeed, the above diagram shows a curious phenomenon: the cheapest price is achieved despite the use of two aircraft.
The key to this mechanism is the combination of two aircraft that cannot be sold.
There are multiple flights a day from Tokyo to Moscow and from Moscow to Paris.
Let us assume that there is a certain time of the day when flights tend to remain unsold.
Suppose those flights are the ones indicated by the red arrows.
Combining those flights and reducing the number of empty seats as much as possible would be profitable for the airline, although the difference would be small.
This is how connecting flights are sold at low prices.
Why is it cheaper to fly farther on the same plane?
Even if the flights are the same, the price of a single flight may be higher than that of a set flight. The reason for this is that the single item can be sold at a higher price because it is a direct flight.
Unfortunately, the seats are not only filled with passengers who want to take a direct flight. Therefore, they are combined with another flight and sold at a lower price as a transit flight.
If there is no transit, the profit from the empty seats is zero. Therefore, the airline company will make a small profit, but a profit none the less, by selling them at a low price.
In this way, transit is offered at a low price.
I hope you understand how it works and will now be able to enjoy a trip as cheaply as possible.
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