# Major Airlines: Let's Get Customers to Pay Something For Nothing! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 26, 2003, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895 "2003-09-26T03:22:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![nisosbar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c37758/32.png) [@nisosbar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nisosbar)\ **Post date:** [September 27, 2003, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/21 "2003-09-27T15:16:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Shirley Ujest \* > **I’m sorry, but is the airlines suppose to hold open a reservation for someone who misses their outbound flight of a round trip?** Wrong - it’s not a reservation; it’s a seat on a flight which was paid for by someone, the airline’s product - he paid for that product. It’s his seat for that flight, whether he’s there or not. Period. > [@](#): > > **They are in business to make money.** Even if that means asking for handouts from Congress every time business goes south in order to subsidize their business failings. That’s accountability for you. :rolleyes: [Joe Brancatelli](http://www.zyworld.com/brancatelli/branc.htm) is a genius at explaining how much self-delusion the airlines have succumbed to: "March 6, 2003 – You don’t come to my little corner of Cyberspace for political discourse, so let’s jump right past the discussion of whether it makes sense to invade Iraq and head for the reality: What happens to the Big Six airlines when we do take up arms? "Well, no secret there. \*\*The Big Six will whine and demand another bailout. “Since the concept of shared sacrifice–not to mention shame–is beyond the tiny, incompetent men who run the nation’s major carriers, they will stamp their feet, pout, threaten and run to Congress demanding taxpayer-funded relief\*\* at the very moment American troops will be fighting and dying half a world a way.” [http://www.zyworld.com/brancatelli/bf2003/branc030603.htm](http://www.zyworld.com/brancatelli/bf2003/branc030603.htm) ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/22 "2003-09-28T05:30:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Early Out \* > Stick it up your ass, **blowero**. Refund or credit, you end up not being charged for a flight you didn’t take. Uh, no - butthole. If you buy a Southwest non-refundable fare and have to cancel, they will NOT refund your money, but they WILL give you credit towards another purchase. Do you get it yet, or are you fucking retarded or something? > [@](#): > > It’s only different, economically, if you never intend to fly on that airline again in your life. In the normal course of events, “non-refundable” means that if you don’t use it, you lose. If you get a credit, you haven’t lost anything, have you? Or is this just too complicated for you? > > Fucking moron. Wow - you’re stupid AND you’re an asshole. This is what kills me about you: You felt compelled to post your snide little “what part of blah, blah, didn’t you understand?” pissy-ass comment, and then when you turn out to be WRONG anyway, you still act like a little bitch about it. Why don’t you call American Airlines? I think they might have a job for an asshole like you. ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 7:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/23 "2003-09-28T07:22:44Z")
I was right, **blowero** , maybe it _is_ too complicated for you. You apparently don’t understand the difference between losing, say, $500 on an unused ticket, and _not_ losing $500 on it. If you get a refund, the $500 is, obviously, back in your pocket. If you get a credit, true, you don’t have the cash, but you haven’t lost $500, have you? Once again, for the impaired: economically, there’s almost no difference between a refund and a credit, assuming that you’ll want to fly again in the future. (Yeah, yeah, the present value is different, but let’s not get into arcana.) Actually, my issue probably isn’t with you. What pisses me off is people who buy a non-refundable ticket, then decide, for whatever reason, that they don’t want to take the trip, and get all huffy because the airline won’t give them their money back, or want to charge them for changing the ticket to another date. What did they think “non-refundable” meant? Assuming that it means “no refund, but maybe a credit” strikes me as an unreasonably risky proposition. When I see the words “non-refundable,” I figure I’d better be prepared to bend over and take it up the ass if I don’t take the flight. The problem you ran into is another kettle of fish. You must not fly very often, because the new, tougher boarding pass rules are, by now, well-known to most travelers. And at every airport I’ve been in lately, there have been reasonably obvious signs at the security screening places indicating that you needed a boarding pass and an ID to get through. Still, they should have warned you. But getting ready to sodomize American Airlines because _you_ failed to grasp the new realities of air travel strikes me as being a bit over the top. These days, they’re not kidding when they say you should get to the airport two hours before a domestic flight, or three hours before an international flight. Take a book to keep you amused while you wait. Cutting it close on timing is just a non-starter. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/24 "2003-09-28T08:19:30Z")
I have been late for flights several times and never had to pay to change my ticket. It all seems to depend on what kind of mood the ticket agent at the airport is in, and what kind of attitude you throw at them. I always gave them the “lost dog” look and a “oh me oh my” attitude. Works for me. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/25 "2003-09-28T08:25:23Z")
Here’s a story though. A few years ago I was in Vegas and I wanted to stay a couple extra days. I call the airlines and they say that will be $50 to change your flight, I say OK. So two days later I get to the airport and check in, the guy says I owe them $50, no problem, I agreed to that amount. He takes my money, hands me my new ticket and tells me my flight is delayed indefinitely. I asked him if I get $50 now because THEY made a change, he said no it doesn’t work like that. So yeah, flying is a major pain in the butt, but it’s the only way to go if you want to get across country in a reasonable amount of time. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/26 "2003-09-28T09:11:51Z")
Some people here are not understanding the most basic concept: you get what you pay for. If you want to have all that flexibility then you buy a full fare ticket. You get a discounted fare _precisely_ by giving up that flexibility and it is moronic to expect to get something you did not pay for. Again: if you want the flexibility then pay full fare. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 4:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/27 "2003-09-28T16:24:20Z")
> [@](#): > > In 11 years I have never seen a one way ticket, purchased under the same conditions, be more expensive than a RT. I have. I am the travel arranger for 4 managers and airlines’ pricing schedules are a complete mystery. I really do think that if the airlines priced their service more transparently, more people would feel comfortable flying. ---
**Author:** ![fruitbat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/58f4c7/32.png) [@fruitbat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fruitbat)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/28 "2003-09-28T17:02:47Z")
Wow **blowero** that **Early** guy is sure being a turd burglar! :rolleyes: Nice to see you get worked up over nothing yet again. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [September 28, 2003, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/29 "2003-09-28T17:24:25Z")
Yeah the ticket price roulette wheel is very annoying. Seems like everyone on the plane paid a different price. ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2003, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895/30 "2003-09-29T07:15:01Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by fruitbat \* > Nice to see you get worked up over nothing yet again. Hmmm…I have 3 main points in response to that: 1. Lick 2. my 3. balls [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/major-airlines-lets-get-customers-to-pay-something-for-nothing/203895.md?page=1)