Have you ever wondered why some flight tickets are cheaper than the others? What would be the trade off for those cheap flight tickets? Have you ever seen people who booked flight being left behind at the airport because the flight was overbooked? What about lost luggage?
Well, these are the questions that aviation enthusiast Leo Khafafa addresses here;
“Airlines all over the world are allowed to overbook passengers up to 10 percent of their capacity. This is to preclude planes from flying with unoccupied seats on account of “no-shows.”
Most airlines, KQ included, ask that passengers check in at least three hours prior to a flight. Most also allow passengers to check in online.
Those who check in after everyone else are put on standby. They can only be assigned a seat if there is a no show. Airlines take this very seriously because unoccupied seats on a flight are considered unsold seats.
Cheap flight tickets or tickets on offer usually come with restrictions. These could be in terms of limited baggage allowance or penalties when it comes to changes in travel dates.
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Some are inflexible and cancellations may require issuance of new tickets without refunds for the canceled ones.
An airline may also have a baggage policy that differs from a partner airline. Changing between these may result in additional payments for extra pieces carried. Read the fine print.
In the aviation world, lost luggage is that which remains unlocated for more than 100 days. Anything before that is merely misplaced and will be delivered to the passenger within that time frame.
Luggage gets misplaced when it isn’t properly tagged at the point of checking in. Make sure your bags are properly tagged with stickers on the side that have your name as well.
Also make it a habit to distribute your business cards or address in various visible parts within your luggage. Should the outer tags fall off, authorities may be forced to open your baggage. The cards will enable them to locate you.”
