Buy a mile on US Airways, get another mile free

Usually, we’re not so big on buying miles, since miles can be so costly. But what if your airline gives you a 100% bonus? That’s what’s happening on US Airways. Through September 15, buy 50,000 miles for $1375 and you get an additional 50,000. You only need 90,000 miles to fly to Asia round-trip from [...]

Ryanair annual profit up 26% but warns on oil costs

Ryanair said on Monday that its annual net profit rose by a quarter but Europe’s biggest no-frills airline also warned of a tough outlook as high fuel costs force it to ground planes and hike fares. Ryanair said profit after tax jumped 26 percent to 401 million euros ($575 million) during the group’s financial year [...]

Alaska Airlines launches fare sale

Alaska Airlines on Thursday launched a fare sale for flights purchased through Oct. 23. The airline, which is operated by Alaska Air Group, said the sale features fares as low as $89 one-way between Anchorage and Fairbanks and $199 between Anchorage and Seattle. The fares are available on select routes between Alaska and the Lower [...]

Flier frustration mounts over sky-high airline fees

Rachel Raskin of Las Vegas and her husband checked four bags on a Delta flight from Las Vegas to New York on their way to South Africa in June and were shocked to be charged an extra $120 on top of their airfare. “I usually fly Southwest, so it didn’t even occur to me that [...]

Bumped? What your airline ticket says about you

There are a few bits of information to pay close attention to on an airline ticket: the flight number, gate number and boarding time. Fare basis code? Not a common concern. But the single-letter code can make a big difference in some parts of the travel experience, even though most passengers don’t pay any attention. [...]

Airline fees test travelers’ limits

After a United flight hit severe turbulence over Kansas on July 20, injuring dozens of people on board, Jay Leno joked that flight attendants administered first aid only to passengers who paid a $7.50 “triage fee.” It was a bit of morbid humor reflecting the view that airline fees are out of control. Even the [...]

Airline fees make it hard to shop for best deal

Finding the best deal on a flight has become a lot more difficult, thanks to hefty baggage and service fees that consumers often don’t know about until they show up at the airline counter, congressional investigators say. Those fees are not part of the ticket price, meaning they can easily go unseen until it’s too [...]