Home » News » American Airlines bars 17-year-old for 3 years after he tried this price-cutting trick

18 July, 2023

American Airlines bars 17-year-old for 3 years after he tried this price-cutting trick

By James Harrison

A young flyer was banned for three years by American Airlines after he attempted a ticket purchasing trick that was aimed at saving him some money.

The 17-year-old got in trouble for attempting to use a ‘skiplagging’ ticket.

What the hell’s a skiplagging ticket?

Well, skiplagging is a cost-saving strategy where a person books a ticket that has a stopover and doesn’t catch the second leg of the flight, saving the passenger money but resulting in a loss for the airline. The practice is not illegal, but American Airlines, among other carriers, have banned it.

But that doesn’t seem right. Wouldn’t a longer journey come at a higher cost?

Not always. Due to the competitive nature of air travel, (especially in countries like America where this practice is more common) specific direct routes will have more competition than others, leading airlines to charge as much as customers are willing to pay.

But, if an airline has to route customers via a hub stopover, it will lower its fares to compete with airlines that run a direct service. Airlines could also have to pay higher airport fees for passengers disembarking at certain airports versus others.

The phenomenon has caught on, with websites such as skiplagged.com giving information for travellers looking to undergo the practice.

Now, this young traveller purchased a ticket from Gainesville, Florida to New York City, with a layover in Charlotte, North Carolina, according to his father Hunter Parson. When he arrived at the gate, security took him to a room and began questioning him after noticing his North Carolina driver’s license, as they suspected he wouldn’t continue flying to New York City, Parson told Queen City News.

Parson said his family had to purchase another ticket, costing more than $400, so that his son could fly to Charlotte. The father claimed that his son had no idea he was doing anything wrong.

“He was left to fend for himself 500 miles from home. He never violated any policy or broke any contract. He simply went to a counter to get his boarding pass,” Parsons said.

A representative from the airline told Insider that the 17-year-old “was questioned only at the ticket counter about their travel while attempting to check-in for their flight.”

Other airlines have also cracked down on skiplagging in recent times. In 2018, United Airlines charged a passenger thousands of dollars for skiplagging 38 times and Lufthansa sued a passenger for skiplagging in the same year.

Featured Image: iStock/VSFP + Tail section of American Airlines 737 airplane

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american airlines skiplagging