From: mkant+@cs.cmu.edu (Mark Kantrowitz)
Subject: FAQ: How to Get Cheap Airtickets 2/2 [Monthly posting]
Followup-To: poster
Reply-To: mkant@cs.cmu.edu
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon
Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1993 07:00:49 GMT
Expires: Mon, 15 Feb 1993 07:00:46 GMT

Archive-name: air-travel/cheap-tickets/part2
Last-Modified: Tue Dec 29 16:40:27 1992 by Mark Kantrowitz
Version: 1.4
Size:  8237 bytes

;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Airfare FAQ, Part 2 ********************************************
;;; ****************************************************************

This post is a summary of useful information for air travelers. The
focus is on obtaining inexpensive air fares, although other topics are
also covered. 

Please mail comments, corrections, additions, suggestions, criticisms
and other information to mkant@cs.cmu.edu.


;;; ********************************
;;; Complaints and Compliments *****
;;; ********************************

If you have a legitimate complaint about service, write a
well-written letter to the appropriate people at the airline. This can
often result in real results. But don't become a habitual complainer.
Many airline customer service departments keep records of all
complaints and compliments. If you complain too often, you'll get
tagged as a flamer, and they'll ignore future complaints. If you are a
frequent flyer and don't complain often, complaints can end up in
travel discount compensation.

Airlines do keep track of who complains and how frequently, so if you
complain too often about trivial matters, your complaints won't have
the same effect as they would if you complained about only important
problems. Keep track of the names of all airline personnel you deal
with, and be as specific as possible about dates, times, places, and
flight numbers in your letter. Enclose copies of any receipts for
expenses incurred because of missed/delayed flights. 

   The Department of Transportation accepts consumer complaints
about airlines and records, compiles, and publishes statistics on
airline performance. The statistics are available in a monthly Air
Travel Consumer Report. For a free copy, write to the Office of
Consumer Affairs, US Department of Transportation, 400 7th Street, NW,
Room 10405, Washington, DC 20590. 202-366-2220. The statistics vary a
lot from month to month.
   On-time:
      Best  -- America West Airlines 84.8%
      Worst -- Delta 74.3%
   Overbooking:
      Best  -- American 89 involuntary bumps/19 million passengers
      Worst -- America West 1,805/3.7 million
   Mishandled baggage:
      Best  -- Southwest
      Worst -- America West

Customer Relations Departments of various airlines:
Aloha Airlines Inc., Customer Relations, PO Box 30028, Honolulu, HI 96820.
Alaska Airlines, Consumer Affairs, PO Box 68900, Seattle, WA 98168. 
America West Airlines, Consumer Affairs, 222 South Mill Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281.
Continental Airlines, Customer Relations, PO Box 4607, Houston, TX 77210-4607.
Delta Air Lines Inc., Law Dept, Hartsfield Atlanta Int Airport, 
   Atlanta, GA 30320. 
Eastern Air Lines Inc., Consumer Affairs, Bldg 11, Rm 1433, Miami Int Airport,
   Miami, FL 33148.
Hawaiian Airlines, Consumer Affairs, Honolulu Intl Airport, PO Box 30008, 
   Honolulu, HI 96820-0008.
Northwest Airlines, Consumer Affairs, Minneapolis/St. Paul Intl Airport, 
   St. Paul, MN 55111.
Pan American World Airways Inc., Consumer Affairs Dept, 200 Park Avenue, 
   New York, NY 10166.
Southwest Airlines Co., Customer Relations, PO Box 37611, Love Field, 
   Dallas, TX 75235-1625.
Trans World Airlines Inc., Customer Relations, 605 Third Ave., New York, 10158.
United Airlines, Customer Relations, PO Box 66100, Chicago, IL 60666. 
USAir, Consumer Relations, Washington National Airport, Washington, DC 20001.

;;; ********************************
;;; On-line reservation services ***
;;; ********************************

Eaasy Sabre is an ailine reservation system. It can be accessed via
Prodigy, Compu$erve, Delphi, or America Online for an additional fee.
Eaasy Sabre is also available through National Videotex as a basic
service. (National Videotex costs $5.95 a month and provides unlimited
basic services for the month and numerous free local access dialup
numbers.) GENIE provides Eaasy Sabre for free (other than the normal
monthly $4.95), assuming you use the service during their off-peak
hours, which are 6pm-8am weekdays, all day holidays and weekends.
Prodigy replaces the Eaasy Sabre interface with their own user interface.

PARS TravelShopper is available on Compu$erve and Delphi.

Official Airline Guide (OAG) Electronic Edition is available on
Compu$erve, Delphi, direct TYMNET (with credit card billing), and
GEnie (for a surcharge).

None of these save you the commission charges, so it doesn't save you
much over calling the airline's 800 number or using a travel agent and
asking lots of "what-if" questions.

;;; ********************************
;;; Miscellaneous Notes ************
;;; ********************************
   
   The largest travel agency in the US is Thomas Cook Travel.

   Keep in mind that ticket agents and gate attendants are
people, and if you're nice to them, they may be able to bend the rules.

   Seat assignment on most airlines starts 3 weeks in advance of
the flight (some are 30 days). No seat assignments on Southwest and
shuttle flights.

   Non-refundable, non-changeable, non-transferable tickets are
the default; you might have to pay more to have a transferable ticket.
But then you might be able to sell half your ticket, and thereby
recoup some of your costs. (This only works on domestic flights, where
you don't need to show a passport.)

   Bargain seats are almost always limited, so start looking
early and be flexible with your times and dates.

   January, February, September and October are the slack travel
months; ticket prices will be cheapest around then.

   Because of the way airlines price tickets, it is sometimes
cheaper to buy a ticket from point A to point C making a mid-trip stop
in point B (i.e., two tickets AC and CB) that it is to buy a ticket
direct from point A to point B. Note, however, that if you do this
your luggage should be carryons, since the airline usually checks the
luggage direct to the ultimate destination. Also, some airlines will
cancel your entire ticket if you skip one leg of the trip.

   Airports notorious for heavy traffic and air-traffic-control
snafus: Hartsfield Airport in Atlanta, Logan Airport in Boston, O'Hare
in Chicago, Stapleton in Denver, JFK in New York, and San Francisco
International. 


;;; ********************************
;;; Other Sources of Information ***
;;; ********************************

   The best source of information is the US Department of
Transportation. All carriers must file their fares with them for
tariff purposes.

   A variety of companies publish rate guides based on the US
Department of Transportation files. The subscription prices are a bit
steep, but your library may have some.

;;; ********************************
;;; Further Reading ****************
;;; ********************************


Consumer Reports Travel Letter
   $37/yr, monthly
   Pox 53629
   Boulder CO 80322-3629
   800-234-1970

Best Fares Magazine (consumer edition):
   $58/year
   Best Fares, Inc.
   1111 W. Arkansas Lane, Suite C
   Arlington, TX 76013  
   1-817-261-6114

Travel Secrets:
   $30/year
   Box 2325
   New York, NY 10108

Travel Unlimited: 
   $25/year
   Box 1058
   Allston, MA 02134

Official Airline Guide, Pocket Edition:
   $82/year

;;; ********************************
;;; Jetlag *************************
;;; ********************************

To reset your clock, there are several things you can do:
   o  Stay up 24+ hours and go to sleep at the normal time
      for your destination.
   o  When you wake up in the morning, go for a half hour
      walk in the bright morning sunlight.
   o  Do not eat right before you go to sleep. Eat a light dinner.
   o  Eat your meals according to the destination time zone.
   o  Do not drink any alcoholic or caffeine-based beverages
      during your flight.


;;; *EOF*
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air