Why is airfare so high out of DTW these days.

[ain0004]

We are thinking of a short trip in May. But prices are still insane.....320/person. I have hard time with this when we paid 153/person with delta in Nov. Am I missing something? I am willing to pay about 220/person. I refuse to fly with spirit, do to bad personal experiences. I can also fly out of Dayton, Columbus and Cinnci if I have to. I can find things slightly cheaper but not by much. I would much rather fly out of DTW> Yes I have looked with allegiant as well. But by the time you add you carry on, its not worth it. Any suggestion? Planes are still looking like they have more than enough seats. Should I just by my time?

 

[grimley1968]

Sorry, but it's not just at DTW. It's everywhere. When automotive fuel is approaching, or surpassing, $4/gallon again, jet fuel is going to see a similar price increase. Airlines are going to pass this cost on to the customer every time. I'm not sure why fuel prices are increasing (sometimes an economy improving at even the current snail's pace can cause fuel price increases), but I'm confident that's behind most of the airlines' recent lack of discounts.

Less competition due to mergers doesn't help, but I still think fuel price volatility is the bigger culprit.

 

[DebbieB]

We are thinking of a short trip in May. But prices are still insane.....320/person. I have hard time with this when we paid 153/person with delta in Nov. Am I missing something? I am willing to pay about 220/person. I refuse to fly with spirit, do to bad personal experiences. I can also fly out of Dayton, Columbus and Cinnci if I have to. I can find things slightly cheaper but not by much. I would much rather fly out of DTW> Yes I have looked with allegiant as well. But by the time you add you carry on, its not worth it. Any suggestion? Planes are still looking like they have more than enough seats. Should I just by my time?

$153 was a bonus. I haven't seen that out of PIT in ages. Closer to $300 is the norm.

 

[rlduvall]

I guess it's all relative because I would love to only have to pay $320 RT to Orlando. I fly out of Tulsa and lately we can't find anything much cheaper than $500. pp, even checking OKC and Tampa airports. Now that's painful.

 

[Greysword]

Maybe due to the time of the year?

Airline prices really have not increased significantly over the past 20-30 years in relation to inflation. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics tracks the changes in airfare since 1995. Check out how airfare increases in relation to annual inflation:

http://apps.bts.gov/xml/atpi/src/index.xml

While everyone's impact is personal and different, general statements on how airfares keep increasing may not be accurate for everyone; it all depends on our point of reference.

 

[mcraige]

Airline prices really have not increased significantly over the past 20-30 years in relation to inflation.

DW and I were talking about this recently. I think this refers to average airfare. In the past, it seems like there were always a few really cheap seats that the travel-savy seemed to find. It's these really cheap seats that seem to be a thing of the past.

 

[Greysword]

DW and I were talking about this recently. I think this refers to average airfare. In the past, it seems like there were always a few really cheap seats that the travel-savy seemed to find. It's these really cheap seats that seem to be a thing of the past.

My personal point of reference is Tallahassee, FL. Airfares in/out of there in the 1980s and 1990s was about $800-1,000 to most destinations. High enough, where most of my friends would drive 3 hours (one way) to Jacksonville, FL for a $400-600 fare when they traveled.

Fares in TLH dropped once Airtran came in, but they still range from $400-$1,000+ depending on the time of year and day of the week. As such, I think $400 fares anywhere are great!

Of course, your reference will vary, which dictates your point of view. if you would like to see what the average airfares are out of your specific airport, the same info in at the Bureau of transportation's website:

http://apps.bts.gov/xml/atpi/src/indextop85.xml

However, I did find the chart interesting, especially when adjusted for inflation. A $373 fare in 2012 is equal to $246 in 1995, which actually isn't too bad these days. In addition, the highest average point was around the turn of the millennium (2000-2001).