A passenger is questioning the price of airline tickets after noticing several partially full flights at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
In a video with over 88,000 views, TikToker Andrew Jehle (@andrewjehle) pushes back at others who he says claim that “flights are full.”
“I just walked around the entire Dallas airport and filmed every single flight,” he says. “A lot of them are not full. I think this proves my point that airlines should decrease the price of their tickets the closer it gets to their flight, so they can fill their flights.”
He shows several signs that say, “There will be empty seats, so feel free to spread out” at the boarding gate for various airlines.
Why do airlines increase ticket prices closer to takeoff?
Choosing the right time to book an airline ticket to score the best price can be tricky.
Book too far out, and passengers may face high prices. Book too close to the trip, and prices skyrocket. NerdWallet suggests booking between one and three months in advance for domestic trips and between two and eight months in advance for international trips.
Commenters weighed in on why airlines boost prices closer to takeoff.
“Closer to the flight, price goes up cuz desperation pays,” one suggested.
“Those that plan ahead should be rewarded,” another wrote.
“So heres the thing, it will cost them more to process new passengers closer to departure than to leave with it empty,” a third added.
What do airline passengers think of his suggestion?
Despite Jehle’s observation, many frequent fliers claim they rarely see empty flights.
“I haven’t been on a flight with an empty seat in ages. I fly 7-10 times a year,” one wrote.
Another said, “I fly for work and I have not been on a flight that wasn’t full in almost a year.”
“Every flight out of and to NYC is full. I probably need to fly to some small town to experience an empty flight,” a third added.
However, some have noticed similar trends, pointing to recent Real ID requirements, economic conditions, and the high-profile airplane crashes that occurred at the beginning of the year.
“I’ve been on 4 flights recently and not 1 of them was full. So idk what these people are saying. And i fly out of ohare,” a viewer wrote.
Others reacted to his suggestion of lowering airline ticket prices closer to the time of takeoff.
“I can’t see them doing that. While there are some last-minute leisure travelers, there are more last-minute business travelers or people traveling due to obligations. Thus, they’ll likely buy either way,” a commenter said. Jehle replied, “Yeah, I get what ur saying, but I’m still gonna push for cheaper last-minute flights.”
“Yes, Lower that price…I would be snatching up tickets!!” another wrote.
“I fly a lot, International and domestic, and I find most to be full, but love the idea of a cheaper last-minute. I still see lots of overbooked flights, which is ridiculous to me,” a third added.
“I’d of booked 4 flights this week if this were true,” a fourth remarked.
@andrewjehle PSA to all airlines pt.2 @Southwest Airlines @delta @United Airlines @American Airlines @Frontier Airlines ♬ original sound – andrewjehle
The Daily Dot reached out to Jehle and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport for comment.
Internet culture is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here. You’ll get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.
