Whether you and your family are avid travelers or are just getting started exploring the world around you, sometimes, it can be a hassle to obtain plane tickets. They can be too expensive, nonrefundable, or sell out quickly, especially if the area you want to fly to is a tourist hotspot. People might be wondering, what is the reason for flying being so expensive in the US?
There are a multitude of reasons as to why flying has become more expensive in the US. These reasons can range from:
- The seat demand with airlines to the rising cost of fuel
- Raising the prices of flight tickets is a combining effort between the airline
- The airport
- The consumers and one action of either entity can affect the outcome of the prices
Keep reading to learn more about the reasons as to why there has become an increase in flight ticket prices along with whether or not the prices will either continue increasing or if they will decrease.
Table of Contents
Why Is Flying So Expensive in the US?
There are numerous reasons as to why flying has become so expensive in the US, lately. Keep reading to learn more about the five different reasons as to why there is an increase in flight ticket prices.
Difference of Airport Prices
Based on which airport you book will also be a defining factor into how expensive your flight ticket is. Airports such as JFK, in New York, and the Charlotte Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina are known to be more on the expensive side compared to other airports that are located in your state.
Capitalization Of Travel Demands
Even during the height of the pandemic, there is a high demand for traveling. With people getting vaccinated things are starting to become more lifted within regards to such activities, such as traveling. So, during major holidays, like Christmas, this becomes the busiest time of year to where people are wanting to travel ahead of the festive holidays.
With the lifting of restrictions and the increasing want to travel during peak times, based on how well the airlines can keep up with these demands, this gives airlines the perfect opportunity to capitalize off of these demanding times and increase the ticket prices.
Increase in Airline Fuel Costs
The cost of fuel rose more than four times than it has since April 2020. Airplane fuel is one of the biggest expenses that often becomes a determinant on how often flight tickets will increase or decrease.
Shortage of Supply
Due to the height of the pandemic and many other factors, there has been a shortage of pilots that were fully trained into flying the planes. There have been pilots that need to be retrained to learn how to fly on a different aircraft, causing the shortage of pilots, which can be said to possibly last two-years.
The shortage of supplies, in theory, could mean a higher salary for the pilots which also coincides with a rise in ticket prices.
Expensive Airports And Airlines
Depending on where you live, there is usually more than one airport for you to commute to. There is one that is usually a bit smaller and more inexpensive, but then there is an airport that is a little bit more on the expensive side.
And, taking into consideration, with your choice of an airport there are also differences in prices with the different airline companies. So, airline companies such as Alaska Airlines and Delta Airlines are going to be a little bit more on the expensive side compared to others.
Will Flight Prices Go Up or Down This Year?
The fluctuation of flight prices depends upon a variety of factors. It depends on the seat demands (i.e. people booking and/or cancelling flights), what day of the week they are booking their tickets as there are specific days that are more busy than others, whether they are flying for business, where the ticket prices may lower, or fun, where the prices may go up, etc.
What Can Impact the Price of Flights Going Up or Down?
There are a number of scenarios that could arise when talking about if a flight ticket price will either increase or decrease.
Keep reading to learn more about the four different possibilities of what could impact the pricing of flight tickets:
- Increase in Airline Fee Charges: One airline may be more expensive. There are, also, airlines that are either merging together, going bankrupt, etc. so other thriving airlines could feel comfortable raising the prices back up since they would not feel like they are in competition anymore.
- Security Fee Charges: Security fees have increased a significant amount. A security fee is the baseline for your ticket price. For example, a passengers facility fee was initially $4.50 but raised up to a maximum of around $18 per round trip. So, on top of what your ticket price will be, that is another $18 added onto that.
- Seat Demand: More people who purchase flight tickets, the higher the prices will continue to be. If a plane isn’t seating that many people then the airline will lower the prices to garner the consumers attention so that they can fill up the plane, but will then raise the prices again for those who want to purchase tickets at the last minute.
- Booking and Cancellations: In real-time, as people are either booking, or cancelling, their flights. There is an algorithm showing whether someone cancels their flight or not. If a flight does get canceled, then the price will be lowered until someone purchases the ticket. Any last-minute purchases, the ticket prices will have already increased.
Planning a budget-friendly trip to the Big Apple? Check out our insider tips for scoring cheap plane tickets to New York City and make your dream urban adventure a reality without breaking the bank.
Six Tips For Less Expensive Flying
Despite the high prices of flight tickets, there are tips and tricks to prevent having to pay out of your intended budget. Keep reading to learn more about the six tips on how to spend less money on flight tickets.
Book Your Flights During The Off-Season
Book your flight on days that do not revolve around peak travel times. Christmas, Thanksgiving, etc. are peak times during the season where there is a lot of travel demand. The best time to think about traveling is through the months of January through the middle of May and September through early December.
Around these specific months of the year are the best times to travel, but keep in mind that there are still happenings during these months, as well. For example, around September there is Labor Day, around February is the Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day, so based on your intended destination keep this in mind when booking your flight.
Book in Advance
Book your flight in advance. During the last two to three weeks before the intended flight date is when the prices will take an increase. The earlier you purchase your tickets, the cheaper they will be. The best estimated time to book your flight is anywhere from three months to thirty days before your flight.
When booking your flight, be mindful of the day that you are looking to book, as well. There are specific days that are the worst times to try and book an inexpensive flight to your intended destination. Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays are the worst days to book a travel flight as they are the busiest and most expensive travel days.
And, lastly, book your flight early in the morning. During this time, a lot of people are either still asleep or are at work where they do not have the time to get onto a website, or app, and book their flight so this gives you a slight advantage to find some really good deals on tickets.
Use Reliable Flight Sites
Use reliable flight sights to search, and book, your flights. A suggested site is Google Flights. With this site, you can input your intended flight information, and this will list you different options and ticket prices, and you are able to choose the most inexpensive one.
When you’re searching for your flights on these sites, check through incognito mode. Based on your cookies, without incognito mode, will factor into the prices increasing because it is based on what you’re searching publicly. When you search in incognito mode, your cookies will reset each time you do a search, which is beneficial in keeping the ticket prices down.
Use the 24-Hour Cancellation Rule
Book flights that are refundable. With a refundable flight, if you feel as though it is too expensive or you are just not interested in travelling to your initial intended destination anymore, you will have a 24-hour window to cancel your flight and receive a refund as opposed to having to pay a cancellation fee.
Lookout For Price Alerts/App Deals
Sign up for alerts, such as a mailing list, or notifications from reliable flight apps or websites, to be one of the first to know about the most recent flight deals. Mailing lists, for example, when they are sending out inexpensive flight deals, typically only last for about twenty-four to forty-eight hours after the deal is announced.
Choose A More Budget-Friendly Airline
Thoroughly research budget-friendly airlines and choose from one of those options. Along with the airline, think about choosing a less-expensive way with wanting to fly, i.e. instead of flying first-class try flying economy.
Be mindful of the location of the airport as one is more expensive than the other. And, lastly, check the terms and conditions for any possible luggage restrictions. If your luggage does not meet the required restrictions, then you will be charged a high fee.
Closing
You have now learned about why it has become expensive to fly in the US. You have also learned about whether or not the prices will go up or down, and the different reasons as to why ticket prices are fluctuating. And, lastly, you have also learned six tips as to how to have a more inexpensive airline flight. In addition to above information also read more to know how to change the passenger name on an airline ticket and additional fee or not for same.