From: mkant+@GLINDA.OZ.CS.CMU.EDU (Mark Kantrowitz)
Subject: Discount Tickets
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 92 17:10:55 -0400
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon
Originator: mkant@GLINDA.OZ.CS.CMU.EDU

After arguing with a friend that American's shenanigans hadn't
eliminated all the discounts, I compiled the following table by
calling all the airlines. Since even American still offers some
discounts, and has more than the four basic fare types, I won the bet.

Some of the Ns listed below are probably inaccurate; in some cases the
airline's agent was unsure or just didn't know. It doesn't hurt to ask
when you purchase your tickets.

Note also that you can often get different fares for the same route by
calling different airlines. It all depends on whether the flight is
direct or connecting, what the competition is like on those routes,
and the current state of the yield management software with respect to
that flight. It always pays to call a couple of airlines before
settling on a fare. 

--mark

Airline	    	7  14  21  30  Stud  Symp  Kids  Fmly  Offpk  Sr  Clrgy  Mil  
=============================================================================
Alaska		Y  Y   SM  N   SM    N     SM    SM    SM     SM  N      N
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
American	Y  Y   LM  N   N     N     N     N     LM     CB  N      N
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
America West	Y  Y   SM  N   Y     N     SM    LM    NT     10% Y      Y
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Continental	Y  Y   SM  N   SM    50%   N     SM    N      10% N      N
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Delta		Y  Y   N   N   N     50%   N     N     N      CB  N      N
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Northwest	Y  Y   N   N   It'l  N     SM    N     Y      CB  N      SM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
TWA		Y  Y   Y   N   It'l  Y     Y     N     LM     10% N      Y
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
United		Y  Y   Y   Y   N     N     N     SO    Y      10% N      LM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
USAir		Y  Y   LM  N   N     N     LM    N     N      10% Y      LM
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Key:
	It'l	International flights only.
	SM	Some markets
	LM	Limited markets
	Y	Yes
	N	No
	SO	Specials only.
	NT	Night (red-eye, early morning).
	CB	Coupon book.
	Stud	Student/Youth fares.
	Symp	Sympathy/Bereavement/Compassionate fares.
	Sr	Senior Citizens.
	Fmly	Family (A couple and one or more kids traveling together)

Notes:
	Y > SM > LM > SO > N.  Specials tend to be 1-2 day special
	deals to particular locations. Airlines were very reluctant
	to discuss which markets a LM includes; you will only find
	out about these if you ask while purchasing a ticket.

	Sympathy/Bereavement/Compassionate fares are for 
	   (1)  attending a funeral
	   (2)  visiting a terminally ill relative shortly before death
        Proof (e.g., name and telephone number of funeral home, copy
        of death certificate) must be presented. Continental and Delta
	give 50% off the full coach fare; Delta charges full coach but
	will refund 50% upon presentation of proof. TWA waives the
	advance purchase requirement for the discount Saturday-night
	stay fares.

	Children: All airlines allow children under 2 years of age to
	fly free, so long as they do not occupy a seat and are
	accompanied by an adult (so-called "lap kids").

	Standby: No airlines sell discounted standby tickets anymore.
	However, all airlines will allow you to use a ticket for standby
	travel to the same destination on an earlier or later flight
	the same day. 

	Group discounts: All airlines offer group discounts (typically,
	40-50% off any full coach fare or 5% off of any fare) for
	groups or conference of sufficient size. In addition, the
	sponsoring organization gets one free ticket to the destination
	for every 40 tickets purchased.

	International Fares: Most international fares still have
	student discounts, as well as a variety of other discounts.

	Pets: The following is what the airlines charge (1-way) for a
	pet which fits under the seat in front of you.
		$30 	Alaska
		$45	Delta, Northwest, USAir
		$50	American, America West, Continental, TWA, United
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air