United, 2 other airlines cut fares
Round of reductions follows increase less than 2 weeks ago
By Mark Skertic
Tribune staff reporter
Posted March 8 2005
A little more than a week after boosting fares, airlines have launched a spring sale on thousands of domestic and international flights.
United Airlines and US Airways ]temporarily dropped prices Monday, an action other major airlines typically follow. Northwest Airlines quickly announced it would match the cuts in most markets.
Travel Web site Travelocity, which tracks fare changes, recorded more than 47,000 reductions Sunday night. The volume of price markdowns was one of the largest in recent memory, a spokeswoman said.
Less than two weeks ago, most of the nation's airlines raised prices as much as $20 per round trip, an increase they said was prompted by skyrocketing fuel prices.
The latest sale will offset that increase in many cases. For example, United has dropped the price of a round-trip ticket from Chicago to Los Angeles to $158 from $218. The cost of a round trip from Chicago to London will decrease to $420 from $488.
Each airline's sale comes with different restrictions. Generally, they require reservations be made in the next several weeks. US Airways requires reservations by Sunday for travel dates through May 19. United requires reservations by March 18 and covers trips through June 10.
Spring sales are intended to boost travel during a slow period, said United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski. Easter is in late March this year, and vacation travel typically falls in the period following Easter until the start of summer, she said.
The airlines are dropping prices at a time that many are cash starved. At nearly $54 a barrel, oil prices have been at near-record levels for weeks. The high price of fuel has offset many of the labor and other cost-savings airlines in bankruptcy, including United and US Airways, have made.
Fare sales are great news for consumers, but they don't make much sense for the industry, said Henry Harteveldt, vice president and travel specialist for Forrester Research.
"I love how two bankrupt airlines are lowering prices at the same time oil prices are surging upwards," Harteveldt said.
If they are going to achieve economic solvency, carriers should be willing to charge more and accept that planes won't carry as many people, he said.
"The airlines are just continuing to commit economic suicide," Harteveldt said. "Fare cuts are the airline's version of bulimia. Every time they take money in, they stick their finger down their throats with fare cuts."Fares typically drop in the spring, then begin rising as summer approaches, said Simon Bramley, vice president at Travelocity. Prices stay high during most of the summer, then usually begin dropping again during the second half of August or early September, he said.
"That's the normal pattern," he said. "Whether it will hold this year is anybody's guess. There's still some opportunity for future sales before we get to the high-demand months."
This has got to end. The entire industry should be up in arms about the blood sucking parasites that laguish in BK and suck the economic viability of carriers that have operated in solvency. Staying OUT of BK should NOT be a DIS-ADVANTAGE! MAD as HELL! :angry: :angry2:
Round of reductions follows increase less than 2 weeks ago
By Mark Skertic
Tribune staff reporter
Posted March 8 2005
A little more than a week after boosting fares, airlines have launched a spring sale on thousands of domestic and international flights.
United Airlines and US Airways ]temporarily dropped prices Monday, an action other major airlines typically follow. Northwest Airlines quickly announced it would match the cuts in most markets.
Travel Web site Travelocity, which tracks fare changes, recorded more than 47,000 reductions Sunday night. The volume of price markdowns was one of the largest in recent memory, a spokeswoman said.
Less than two weeks ago, most of the nation's airlines raised prices as much as $20 per round trip, an increase they said was prompted by skyrocketing fuel prices.
The latest sale will offset that increase in many cases. For example, United has dropped the price of a round-trip ticket from Chicago to Los Angeles to $158 from $218. The cost of a round trip from Chicago to London will decrease to $420 from $488.
Each airline's sale comes with different restrictions. Generally, they require reservations be made in the next several weeks. US Airways requires reservations by Sunday for travel dates through May 19. United requires reservations by March 18 and covers trips through June 10.
Spring sales are intended to boost travel during a slow period, said United spokeswoman Robin Urbanski. Easter is in late March this year, and vacation travel typically falls in the period following Easter until the start of summer, she said.
The airlines are dropping prices at a time that many are cash starved. At nearly $54 a barrel, oil prices have been at near-record levels for weeks. The high price of fuel has offset many of the labor and other cost-savings airlines in bankruptcy, including United and US Airways, have made.
Fare sales are great news for consumers, but they don't make much sense for the industry, said Henry Harteveldt, vice president and travel specialist for Forrester Research.
"I love how two bankrupt airlines are lowering prices at the same time oil prices are surging upwards," Harteveldt said.
If they are going to achieve economic solvency, carriers should be willing to charge more and accept that planes won't carry as many people, he said.
"The airlines are just continuing to commit economic suicide," Harteveldt said. "Fare cuts are the airline's version of bulimia. Every time they take money in, they stick their finger down their throats with fare cuts."Fares typically drop in the spring, then begin rising as summer approaches, said Simon Bramley, vice president at Travelocity. Prices stay high during most of the summer, then usually begin dropping again during the second half of August or early September, he said.
"That's the normal pattern," he said. "Whether it will hold this year is anybody's guess. There's still some opportunity for future sales before we get to the high-demand months."
This has got to end. The entire industry should be up in arms about the blood sucking parasites that laguish in BK and suck the economic viability of carriers that have operated in solvency. Staying OUT of BK should NOT be a DIS-ADVANTAGE! MAD as HELL! :angry: :angry2:
