Major airline faces backlash after using ‘ghost flights’ to exploit a legal loophole: ‘They weren’t even selling tickets’

L4sBot@lemmy.worldmod to Technology@lemmy.world – 304 points –
Major airline faces backlash after using ‘ghost flights’ to exploit a legal loophole: ‘They weren’t even selling tickets’
news.yahoo.com

Major airline faces backlash after using ‘ghost flights’ to exploit a legal loophole: ‘They weren’t even selling tickets’::Ultimately, it’s incumbent on lawmakers to take steps to ensure this practice is discouraged.

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When you do this as a passenger to get a cheaper fare the airliner will ban you for life.

Wait, are you saying if you buy a ticket from Orlando to Las Vegas and the flight stops for a planned plane change in Atlanta, if you get off in Atlanta because that was your actual destination and DON'T continue on to Vegas you can get in trouble?

Correct. "In trouble" depends on your definition though. They ban ot because they give discounts for common destinations but they don't like it if you take advantage of the discount to fly to some less popular destination as a layover that would typically cost more if booked directly.

How can they even find out? You just go down with the other people who paid the direct trip there. Do they keep track somehow?

They know who's aboard the plane and aboard any connecting flights. Not sure if they'd be able to tell if it was one where you stay on the same plane the whole time, but those aren't as common IME.

Not in legal trouble but the airline might decide not to sell tickets to you in the future.