Airlines use all kinds of methods to price discriminate, in order to get as much revenue from each passenger as possible. Here’s an interesting new pricing quirk, as flagged by Thrifty Traveler.
Delta’s latest method for ticket price discrimination
While it doesn’t appear to be widespread yet, Delta has started charging different fares in some markets based on whether you’re traveling alone or with a companion.
Take a one-way flight from Minneapolis to Miami, as an example, where the entry level economy fare shows as being $209 when searching for one passenger.
However, if you instead search that same flight for two passengers, you’ll find that the entry level economy fare is just $128 per person, representing a massive discount. A similar discount applies for the extra legroom economy seating, but not first class.
Looking at the fare rules, you’ll see this reflected there, so this isn’t a pricing error. There’s a section about “Accompanied Travel,” which mentions that to quality for the cheaper fare, you “must be accompanied on all sectors in same compartment by at least 1 adult.”
Currently this price difference seems to only apply in a very limited number of domestic markets, and for one-way travel.
What should we make of this Delta pricing quirk?
It’s worth acknowledging that in many industries, providing discounts for purchases in bulk is a common practice. It’s not unusual to see something like a “buy one get one free” offer, or a “buy one get one 50% off” offer.
However, up until now, we haven’t really seen this used all that much in the airline industry. Sure, sometimes you’ll see a companion fare sale, where there are discounted premium tickets if you’re traveling as a couple, but those are typically limited time offers, and are the exception rather than the norm.
Airlines price discriminate in all kinds of way, in an effort to extract as much revenue from each passenger as possible. That largely comes in the form of trying to charge business travelers more than leisure travelers, given that the former are often spending other peoples’ money. It’s why many of the more affordable international fares have a Saturday night minimum stay required, since most business travelers are on the move during the week.
For now we’ll have to mark this as “developing.” It’s anyone’s guess if this is a trial Delta is running to see how it impacts demand, or what. The timing coincides with Delta overhauling its fare types and branding. So if you are researching Delta fares and are traveling with at least one other person, it could be worth indicating that during the initial search, since it could land you a better deal.
Honestly, when it comes to the ways that airlines try to parse out market segments, this doesn’t seem like the wildest idea. However, the challenge is that many leisure customers travel solo, so the airline is isolating those people as well.
Bottom line
Delta is now offering discounted fares for couples in select markets (or more expensive fares for solo travelers, depending on how you want to look at it). While the concept of offering a discount for a second customer isn’t unusual in many industries, it’s not something we’ve widely seen in the airline business.
I’m curious to see how this concept evolves, since it seems like it might be a test for the time being.
What do you make of this Delta pricing quirk?
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