# How do low cost airlines make money **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 21, 2019, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413 "2019-07-21T20:53:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/41 "2019-07-22T23:36:25Z")
> [@digs](#): > > “Take a refund and fend for yourself?” That would’ve been much better than what Spirit did. > > They cancelled for no reason (weather was fine, so agents had no idea why), and offered NO refund. My teenage son had to buy a ticket on another airline with what little money he had with him. > > He got no refund from Spirit, because they offered to book him on their next flight from O’Hare to NYC. All he’d have to have done was to wait from Thursday to Tuesday for the next flight. There was a case where Frontier did the opposite and canceled a flight and left a bunch of people in Mexico with no way to get home and just told them “Hey, we refunded your money, that’s all we’re obligated to do.” ---
**Author:** ![I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/i_love_me_vol.i/32/521_2.png) [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_Love_Me_Vol.I)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 7:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/42 "2019-07-23T07:30:20Z")
> [@bump](#): > > SWA flies into the main airport in some cities (San Antonio, New Orleans, Kansas City, for example) Do San Antonio, New Orleans, and Kansas City have more than one airport? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/43 "2019-07-23T08:04:35Z")
In many places the secondary airport in inside and near the city center. Like London, where Heathrow and Gatwick are both far from the city center and indeed, Gatwick is outside the Greater London Metropolitan area.While London City is very near the financial district. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/44 "2019-07-23T10:56:43Z")
I recently flew Spirit Airlines for the first time & I’d say these “no frills” airlines make their money on passengers who need some frills…such as bringing a carry on bag. They only allow a “personal item”, such as a purse or briefcase and charge you $40 each way to bring a carry on. An additional $10 per ticket, each way, if you want to get a seat assignment before you arrive at the airport so you can sit with your family. And if you want a glass of water, it’ll cost you $5. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_G](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_g/32/5080_2.png) [@Steven\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_G)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/45 "2019-07-23T11:36:01Z")
If I remember correctly, at start-up Southwest airlines had punctuality as their main strategy. Analysis of delays and minimising these drove the whole plan. Servicing of planes (food, cleaning, fuel) was a constant source of trouble at some airports, so stop serving food, cabin crew to clean, fuelling schedule to be planned carefully etc. Another problem is availability of crews (illness etc.) and planes (breakdown, maintenance). Pilots are approved for one type of plane at any time, with lengthy re-training to change. So if you have an issue then having one model avoids mismatches when you need to rearrange things. Also one model, leased newish planes reduces breakdown and simplifies maintenance anyway. Few other things as well that I can’t remember. The lowered cost was a secondary target and welcome effect. Whole thing used as an example in business studies for strategy definition and implementation. ---
**Author:** ![Scougs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scougs/32/3158_2.png) [@Scougs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scougs)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/47 "2019-07-23T11:51:02Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > North Americans are usually happy to rent a car at an airport to drive 50 miles to where they actually want to be. > > The nearest international airport to the Grand Canyon is 275 miles away, in Las Vegas. > > The nearest international airport to Mount Rushmore is Denver, 291 miles away. > > The driving distance from Toronto to Niagara Falls 78 miles, etc. But that’s not the point. Your examples are where the only airport is miles from where you want to be. The European low cost airlines can fly to some small, remote airport which has delusions of grandeur in what it calls itself. To be honest, there has been a lot of improvement in this area in recent years. Some examples: Ryanair famously used to fly to “Frankfurt”, but if you looked closely it was “Frankfurt Hahn”. You might book that thinking you are actually flying to Frankfurt, not an ex-airbase 75 miles from Frankfurt. The real Frankfurt airport is 7 miles from the city centre. Then there’s Stockholm Skavsta (65 miles from Stockholm), Barcelona Girona (60 miles from Barcelona), Barcelona Reus (also 60 miles away, in the other direction), and Paris Beauvais (55 miles). It’s not the distance that’s remarkable, it’s the fact that in every case there is a main airport much, much nearer the city you are trying to get to. ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/48 "2019-07-23T11:53:28Z")
I flew round-trip from Gatwick to Jersey last month on EasyJet. By checking a bag and choosing an exit-row seat the price pretty much doubled. Leaving Gatwick was delayed by over an hour due to the cockpit door failing to lock. The reason given for having to fix it last minute was that we were the very first passengers on this brand-new A319 and it hadn’t been tested during pre-delivery flight tests. Everything was clean and shiny and even the magazines had never been flipped through. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/49 "2019-07-23T12:46:42Z")
> [@kferr](#): > > I flew round-trip from Gatwick to Jersey last month on EasyJet. By checking a bag and choosing an exit-row seat the price pretty much doubled. Leaving Gatwick was delayed by over an hour due to the cockpit door failing to lock. The reason given for having to fix it last minute was that we were the very first passengers on this brand-new A319 and it hadn’t been tested during pre-delivery flight tests. Everything was clean and shiny and even the magazines had never been flipped through. Oh, that’s reassuring. What else “hadn’t been tested”? Navigation? Landing gear? ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/50 "2019-07-23T13:58:45Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I don’t think that’s true for Dallas-Love; I’m pretty sure 707s flew there back before DFW opened, and those needed a lot more runway than a 737. But it’s true for all the others. Pretty much the main reason Dulles, O’Hare, etc were built was because the older airports in those cities couldn’t handle 707s, DC-8s, etc. Definitely not true for Love; prior to the construction of DFW, Love had regular 747 service. And even today, when the President visits Dallas, they fly Air Force One right into Love Field every time. And **I Love Me, Vol. I** there are others; Kansas City has Wheeler and New Orleans has Lakefront, for example. San Antonio doesn’t have a second airport as such, although there are regional general aviation airports with large enough runways in San Marcos and New Braunfels. ---
**Author:** ![fedman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/278dde/32.png) [@fedman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fedman)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/51 "2019-07-23T14:57:53Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > I’ve heard the really cheap airlines like Ryanair in Europe and Spirit in the US actually make more of their revenue from these ancillary fees than actual airfares. Besides luggage, selling snacks and other extras onboard provides a lot of their revenue. And fees if you want preassigned seats (Which maybe you can skip if traveling alone and are willing to risk getting a middle seat, but if you’re traveling with kids and want to make sure you’re seated together you pretty much have to pay it). > > I’ve heard Agilent called a “travel company with planes”. I’m told a lot of their revenue actually comes from selling things like hotel rooms and rental cars as part of all inclusive vacation packages that include a flight + hotel + car. remember when Ryanair wanted to charge for bathroom use (!!) until outcry changed their mind? ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/52 "2019-07-23T15:02:02Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > They also (largely) lease their aircraft, avoiding a major capital expense and interest costs even if they can’t take advantage of depreciation. I was going to post some info on this but it is proprietary so I can’t. But both Ryanair and Easyjet are shown a primary purchasers. I am posting this while sitting in the 737 factory in Renton. ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2019, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/53 "2019-07-23T17:17:50Z")
Nobody has mentioned the obvious yet. The Illuminati pay them to spray their mind control chemtrails. Duh! ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/54 "2019-07-24T00:42:48Z")
> [@Scougs](#): > > But that’s not the point. Your examples are where the only airport is miles from where you want to be. The European low cost airlines can fly to some small, remote airport which has delusions of grandeur in what it calls itself. That happens here, as well. Allegiant Airlines flies to Mid-America Airport, which is a 25 mile drive from downtown St. Louis, while Lambert Airport is only 14 miles. Allegiant also flies to Sanford, Florida instead of Orlando (they call it Orlando/Sanford) , Provo and Ogden, Utah instead of Salt Lake City, Oakland, California instead of San Francisco, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Scougs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scougs/32/3158_2.png) [@Scougs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scougs)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/55 "2019-07-24T12:27:10Z")
> [@fedman](#): > > remember when Ryanair wanted to charge for bathroom use (!!) until outcry changed their mind? No, remember when Ryanair told the press they were considering charging for bathroom use. Michael O’Leary is a master of getting himself and his product in the press. They also said they were consider fares for standing on the plane. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/56 "2019-07-24T12:39:36Z")
Some outlying airports make sense, if a border (and local taxes and regulations etc. are issues). The Burlington, VT and Plattsburgh, NY airports are easy to get to from Montreal, and so is Bellingham, WA from Vancouver or Niagara Falls, NY from Toronto. They all have been focuses of LCC services. ---
**Author:** ![Royal\_Nonesutch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecb155/32.png) [@Royal\_Nonesutch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Royal_Nonesutch)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/57 "2019-07-24T13:40:38Z")
> [@Kent\_Clark](#): > > That happens here, as well. Allegiant Airlines flies to Mid-America Airport, which is a 25 mile drive from downtown St. Louis, while Lambert Airport is only 14 miles. That seems pretty like a pretty insignificant distance if you can get flights for less than 10% of the price of a legacy carrier’s flight to or from Lambert, which is how much you can often save in Europe by flying Ryanair, Eurowings or easyJet as opposed to Lufthansa, Air France or KLM. It should be pointed out that European budget airlines do not ONLY fly into smaller, out-of-the-way secondary airports. Ryanair actually serves most major international airports in Europe, the two biggest they do NOT fly into are London’s Heathrow and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle. (for example Ryanair has flights from Amsterdam’s Schipol, Frankfurt International and Rome’s Fiumicino (“Leonardo da Vinci”) 3 of the world’s busiest airports. ---
**Author:** ![Disheavel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@Disheavel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Disheavel)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/58 "2019-07-24T15:59:22Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > The ULC’s serve outlying airports not only because of typically lower landing fees, but because they can go straight in and out (relatively) rather than pass over some beacon 100 miles out and get in line, with attendant time and fuel savings. This is the biggest component to my mind. There was a great youtube explanation- so don’t quote me on the actual numbers like they had in their information but it was something like. RyanAir planes fly 10 flights per day compared to “Lufthansa’s” 6 flights per plane. But this is both in turnaround time (45min. vs. 90min.) and in taxi+takeoff time- in addition to flight duration. Similar airplanes across the board allow rapid catch up if there is a weather delay. And I can’t remember exactly what the other component was regarding night time, but it was something like no red-eye flights so company sleeps from midnight to 5.am ---
**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413/59 "2019-07-24T16:40:47Z")
All explained here [https://youtu.be/HPyl2tOaKxM](https://youtu.be/HPyl2tOaKxM) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-low-cost-airlines-make-money/837413.md?page=2)