Boston to New York for $7? Can someone explain why?

Shashank Nigam — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 01:14:58 +0000

Although American Airlines posted a $45 million profit in the last quarter, it was only the sale of a financial advisory unit that kept them in black. Otherwise, they’d have lost over $300 million in one quarter. But why? Shouldn’t all those charges for anything that’s not attached to the plane helping boost profits? Apparently not. Since the fares themselves are not just low, but utterly unrealistic and unsustainable.

Shocking prices!

Here’s an shocking discovery I made while searching for fares on Vayama.com. The fare for a JFK-Singapore flight is $800.20 (on Cathay Pacific), and from Boston – JFK – Singapore is $807.20 (on AA + Cathay Pacific). That means the flight from Boston to JFK is merely $7! That is less than the price for a person to get from Manhattan to JFK by subway! Even a regular bus ticket from Boston to New York City is $15. See the screenshots below for yourself.

How is this possible?

Even though both American Airlines and Cathay Pacific are part of the OneWorld alliance, and cooperate on this flight and have revenue share agreements, how is it possible for the fare to be so low? Is American Airlines really charging only $7 for this ticket? Or is Cathay Pacific or Vayama footing the difference between the regular Boston – JFK fare? If not, then such fares are totally unsustainable and probably the cause of many airlines’ downfall. It is here that the belt needs to be tightened, not by charging $2 for a cup of water!

I personally don’t have an explanation for such fares, but if you do, please share your thoughts in the comments section. I (and my readers) would love to be enlightened.

P.S: I generally don’t digress from writing about branding for airlines, but just couldn’t help deviate here towards the pricing side after my discovery online.

Brand Journeys: Delhi to Singapore on Jet Airways, the “best Indian airline flying international”

Shashank Nigam — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 12:37:02 +0000

Key Flight Facts

Airline: Jet Airways
Travel purpose: Moving to Singapore to begin college studies
Departure from: Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi, India
Arrival at: Changi International Airport, Singapore
Date of travel: 27 July 2008
Contributor: Shitij Nigam
Flight rating: 8/10

Image courtesy Flickr user Guido Haesevoets

Check-in

The check-in was process was swift and painless, and partially so because the airport was slightly empty (morning flights not exactly being the craze). The airport staff were also familiar with my Students Pass, something I’d been worried about previously, as to whether or not it would end-up causing unnecessary delays. The Jet Airways staff at the baggage check-in counter was nice enough to ask me about my college and course (and I was nice enough to explain. In detail.)

Airport security

Fast forward to the security rows, where liquids and semi-liquids are banned, due to which I wasn’t allowed to carry in my favorite grape-flavored jam bottle (which had been bubble-wrapped!). I offered to taste it, but the security officers have probably little or no sense of humor. In the end however, my father somehow managed to get them to allow us to continue with it (no bribes though. I know what you are thinking).

Flight boarding

Boarding, however, could have been more pleasant, as the passengers had been reduced to sitting in the transporting bus for some time due to a “technical fault” in the plane, which led to an unceremonious delay. Nevertheless, the flight was only 10-12 minutes late.

In-flight

Pre-take-off services were good enough and we were readily provided with lime juice once we were seated. Food itself was rather filling (as large Indian spreads tend to be), although the plate was slightly cramped, with the whole menu being served all at once. The walnut brownie was delicious.

Overall, a rather smooth flight, although the flight attendants weren’t readily available whenever passengers needed them, and a nervous flight attendant looked slightly jittery as well. The blankets were warm and I managed a few winks even in a relatively short flight (5.5hrs), although flight attendants seemed to have a knack of disturbing us at the wrong time. I caught a glimpse of some red-blue candy, but alas, it was never served.

Best Indian airline flying international

On the whole, a pretty good experience, much better than expected. Check-In services have greatly improved, considering my last venture some years back, when the person sitting at the immigration counter started pointing out similarities between my father’s and my photographs, which left us slightly disgruntled. But the present is what we’re concerned with, and as far as services are concerned, the delay during boarding couldn’t be helped, but there was a little bit of room for improvement in the flight attendants. Overall, Jet Airways is probably still the best Indian airline to fly international routes. Let’s wait and see what happens when Kingfisher enters the foray.

About Brand Journeys: This is the latest exciting section on SimpliFlying.com, where airline passengers can share a brand review of their flight with other travelers. Please do tell us about your experiences as well. Any country. Any airline. We’d love to hear from you.

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