Airline pax bumping

Let'sgoflying!

Let'sgoflying!

Touchdown! Greaser!
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Feb 23, 2005
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west Texas
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Dave Taylor
Need to know how this works.
Flight is overbooked.
They are starting to page passengers, probably to inform them.
If I fail to respond, will they just go onto the next victim?
Or will they catch me during boarding?
 
If you already have seat assignments, you are unlikely to be bumped.
 
And, if boarding is underway, your group is called and you have not been informed you’re being bumped, you’re likely ok.
 
SCCutler said:
If you already have seat assignments, you are unlikely to be bumped.
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Unless it's United, then you can be dragged kicking and screaming down the aisle. :)

Usually, those being called to the podiums are those without seat assignments and more often than not, if you're being called, it's because they now have a seat for you. If you're being bumped, you'll be left to deal with until after the flight leaves.

It's been a long time since I've been actually bumped due to oversold flights (and that was a real bad scene, back in the old USAir days).

I have two other "bump" amusements. A while back I was flying back from CLT to IAD. If I took the 6:50 AM flight, it was nearly half the price of the one that left at 9:00. I grudgingly got up extra early to save a few bucks. I get to the airport and their looking for volunteers to get off the early flight and take the later one. Great, I took the $250 and had breakfast. I just wish they'd have told me that before I left for the airport, I could have had another hour sleep.

I've had been bumped several times due to equipment changes, and once my flight got canceled due to airline shenanigans.
 
Both legs were overfull, seems like everything is these days.
(737Max issue?)
Was not bumped; thanks for light legal reading at the gate before push.
 
On Southwest...if you are a no show 10 min out you can be bumped and you seat given to a standby passenger.
 
Shawn said:
On Southwest...if you are a no show 10 min out you can be bumped and you seat given to a standby passenger.
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Every airline has a cutoff. It's required by 14 CFR 250. Usually 10 or 15 minutes for domestic. Longer for international.

Anyone who is at the gate by the cutoff would qualify for the IDB compensation under 14 CFR 250 if he is denied boarding due to an oversale.
 
On the mainline airlines, there's a formula for who gets bumped first. Ticket price, frequent flyer status, date purchased and likely a few other factors. If you fly every week, and someone else pays for your ticket, you are likely never going to get bumped (I flew every week for 30 years, never got bumped once). If on the other hand, you got a $99 ticket, have never flown the airline before, you are more likely to get bumped. They are getting smarter about how they do it now though and basically auctioning off some compensation (usually a $$ credit for air travel that is good for a year on that airline). There is very little chance these days of an involuntary bump, unless you aren't at the gate in time.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
Both legs were overfull, seems like everything is these days.
(737Max issue?)
Was not bumped; thanks for light legal reading at the gate before push.
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That might be exacerbating the issue, but even before that the most common announcement I hear is, "this flight is fully booked, we may need to gate check some of the carry-on luggage".
 
Hang 4 said:
They are getting smarter about how they do it now though and basically auctioning off some compensation (usually a $$ credit for air travel that is good for a year on that airline). There is very little chance these days of an involuntary bump, unless you aren't at the gate in time.
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I've noticed the first thing they're doing is offering a free flight change at the check-in kiosk(I think maybe even when you check in on-line)... Want to get to X on a different flight? Change it now...
 
Nothing useful to add. Just gloating. Happened to me just once. First they asked for volunteers. The deal was another night in town at their expense and a voucher for a free ticket in the US and Caribbean within the next year. It was Usair. Got a great room, great chow and another night to party in St Maarten. Next day the terminal is a mad house. They tell us just wait here. Awhile later a girl says come with me. Follow her over to the American counter and get handed off to the agent there. First Class to Miami. Little hair of the dog that bit ya for free. Life was good
 
My wife used to hold Concierge Key status on American.

We were waiting for the plane to arrive in the SFO Terminal, homeward bound SFO-JFK. She got a phone call on her cell from the Concierge Key desk saying the flight has been cancelled but don't worry, we already have you booked on flight #xxx Business Class arriving JFK less than 30 minutes from your original booking. So when we post the cancellation on the monitors, there will be a rush to the desk; don't worry we have your back.

My wife alertly asks what about my husband? They say he is not flying on the same record number, who and where is he? She explains that we were not travelling on the same record number as she originated at a different airport. He said OK, meet me at my desk and provided directions. We went through two unmarked doors and found Jimmy. After reviewing our documents he made a few phone calls and told me to leave the AA gates, proceed to the United gates, and give them this document. Over there I met with UA's version of Jimmy who fixed me up with a Business Class ticket to JFK. We arrived at JFK about 20 minutes apart.

There is a lot the airlines can do if you have enough status. Concierge Key was nice, but her job required less travel in subsequent years and she lost the status. Now just Executive Platinum, Platinum for life. I'm Gold for life myself. It does help!
 
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luvflyin said:
Nothing useful to add. Just gloating. Happened to me just once. First they asked for volunteers. The deal was another night in town at their expense and a voucher for a free ticket in the US and Caribbean within the next year. It was Usair. Got a great room, great chow and another night to party in St Maarten. Next day the terminal is a mad house. They tell us just wait here. Awhile later a girl says come with me. Follow her over to the American counter and get handed off to the agent there. First Class to Miami. Little hair of the dog that bit ya for free. Life was good
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Had a similar scenario a few years ago. Flying east coast to west coast mid day. Airline asks for volunteers. There was another flight that got home later that evening and offer was for a full round trip ticket voucher anywhere in US. Being in no rush I volunteered. Long story short, new flight was delayed that was gonna cause an overnight layover...old flight was slightly delayed...they ended up booking me BACK on my original flight in first class which had opened up due to the delay.

Made it home only 30 min later than scheduled with a first class upgrade and a free flight voucher. That was a win.
 
Based on my extensive experience in Part 121 operations I can state without a doubt that it's either a sophisticated computer algorithm or ....





this guy



united-airlines-internet-reactions-fb7__700-png.jpg
 
In this day of non-refundable fares and computerized ticketing, there's little excuse for overselling a flight. It was quite common to do back in the day when you could cancel without penalty. My dad in the day (and he had airlines for clients) would book multiple flights not knowing which one he was going to use. He had to split these across the airlines because no airline would issue multiple concurrent reservations. It was people like him that made the airlines overbook in the day.
 
I was on a roughly 8 am monday flight nearly every week for 22 years. Mostly out of Atlanta, but a bit out of Daytona Beach. I pretty much figured out that if I was retired and bored, all I needed to do was to buy a cheap ticket to some of the more popular cities; ORD, any NYC, Houston and a few others. They were always overbooked, and not by a trivial amount. Buy a real cheap ticket, sit at the gate for a while, see how the auction is progressing and get a bunch of airline $$ when it hits a good price. Almost everyone on the first flight out on Monday HAS to be where they are going, so you won't have the family on their once a year trip to Disney jumping on 6 spots.

15 years ago, it would have been a sure thing. Now they are getting a lot be better at managing the seats. Not sure I'm willing to risk a trip to Houston if I don't win the lottery :)
 
flyingron said:
In this day of non-refundable fares and computerized ticketing, there's little excuse for overselling a flight.
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It is simply a numbers game to maximize the revenue of a flight. Even with regular fares there is percentage of last minute cancellations and no shows...overbooking is just a gamble on those odds holding to sell every seat possible...or rather capture more revenue by reselling those seats.

That extra revenue well makes up for the occasional cost of bumping a PAX.

Even without multiple bookings, I am one of those that probably change 50% of my flights last minute...but that is possible on Southwest.
 
I've been riding the airlines for over 40 years. I've never (knock on wood!) been bumped. I have spent a night (unplanned) in some locations because of weather or mechanical issues, but I've never lost a seat due to bumping. Being at the airport at least two hours early does help.
 
Ghery said:
I have spent a night (unplanned) in some locations because of weather or mechanical issues.
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Another travel trick I learned. If you are stranded overnight because of weather you are SOL. If you are stranded due to mechanical airlines will usually provide a hotel voucher to put you up overnight if you ask (they usually do not offer unsolicited).

This is where making friendly with the Gate Agent comes into play: Leaving middle of nowhere middle of the country headed home to SJC on the last flight. Plane is delayed due to weather and gonna miss the connection in Denver to get home. Option one: Stay where I am and get first flight out in AM but sleeping in airport. Option two: Get to Denver but again, sleeping in airport. Option three: Look for another route home. I find a flight through PHX with a connection to home. GA is about to switch then says "Oh, the Plane to PHX is also delayed and you will miss that connection as well"...OK"..."Is PHX plane delayed due to weather or mechanical?" I asked..."Hmm. let me see...yup mechanical"..."Great, switch me to PHX, at least I will get a hotel when I land and be half way home"..."Done...well played sir."
 
Shawn said:
Another travel trick I learned. If you are stranded overnight because of weather you are SOL. If you are stranded due to mechanical airlines will usually provide a hotel voucher to put you up overnight if you ask (they usually do not offer unsolicited).
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Usually that's the case. But, I remember a time 10 years ago where my wife and I were taking different flights to SFO from SEA to connect to a common flight to SYD. The weather in the PNW was lousy and we missed the flight out of SFO. I told my wife that if she made it to SFO in time she was to continue to SYD. She had been there before and knew how to get to the hotel. Didn't matter, she missed it too. UA put us up for the night and gave us meal vouchers. Put us on the flight to SYD the next day. Definitely a weather related problem. I guess status in their frequent flyer program paid off.
 
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