While trolling for business class fares to Frankfurt and Budapest I noticed that a flight to Budapest going through Frankfurt is cheaper than just to Frankfurt. What would prevent me from buying a ticket to Budapest if I wanted to go to Frankfurt and never using the second half of the ticket?
-Marvin
Hi Marvin,
What you have run into is called the classic “Hidden City” situation. Airlines do not like this situation at all and try their best to prevent this from occurring. Most of the airlines have a policy on this but in the age of purchasing your tickets online it is very difficult to prevent. If you do it on the outbound portion of a round trip, the rest of your itinerary will be canceled (so don’t).
Here is a sample letter from American Airlines Agency Site which sums up most airlines policy:
Dear,
Let me take the opportunity to clarify American Airlines position on hidden city or point beyond ticketing. Purchasing a ticket to a point beyond the actual destination and getting off the aircraft at the connecting point is unethical. It is tantamount to switching price tags to obtain a lower price on goods sold at department stores. Passengers who attempt to use hidden city tickets may be denied boarding, have the remainder of their ticket confiscated and may be assessed the difference between the fare paid and the lowest applicable fare.
Because we compete with other airlines with different route structures, we sometimes find it necessary to give a traveler who is traveling beyond a connecting point a better price than travelers who are just traveling to the connecting point. For example, a passenger who is traveling to Austin, Texas from Los Angeles can go on one airline via Phoenix for a price that is lower than the cost of traveling on American between Los Angeles and Dallas. If we want to offer the same price to Austin as the other airline, but the only way we can get travelers there is via Dallas, we find ourselves charging the Austin passengers less than the Dallas passengers.
Although the issuance and usage of hidden city tickets is not illegal in the sense that one could be fined or sent to jail by the government, it is unethical and a breach of a passengers contract with AA. Both tariff rule 100AA and American’s Condition of Carriage, which are incorporated into every ticket sold by American as part of our agreement to carry the passenger named on the ticket, bar hidden city ticketing. In addition, it violates the agencys’ contract to act as an agent for American Airlines.
If American Airlines continues to lose revenue as a result of hidden city transactions, the fares we charge must inevitably rise.
Sincerely,
