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From: wm@tekchips.UUCP (Wm Leler)
Newsgroups: net.consumers
Subject: UNITED cancelations
Message-ID: <880@tekchips.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 20-Jun-84 16:18:53 EDT
Article-I.D.: tekchips.880
Posted: Wed Jun 20 16:18:53 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 22-Jun-84 20:38:15 EDT
Organization: Tektronix, Beaverton OR
Lines: 34

Last week I took a trip on United, and all four of my
flights were canceled!  In the Denver airport I noticed
that several other flights had also been canceled. 
When I asked why one of my flights had been canceled,
they told be because of mechanical problems.  But I asked
someone else later, and they said because of weather.
The flights I ended up on seemed to be more full than normal.

I'm suspicious --

Is there any possibility that an airline might cancel flights
that are less than full, and rebook the people on another
flight?  By flying the same number of people but fewer actual
flights (by filling flights more) they would save a bundle of money.
Would an airline that was in financial trouble stoop to something
like this?

I'm not trying to cast aspersions on United, as an airline I
generally like them, but I'm curious if other people out there
have had similar experiences or suspicions.

A related question:  If an airline did this openly, but gave
significantly cheaper fares, and guaranteed that they would
give you more than (say) 5 hours notice, and that they would
get you on a flight within (say) 2 hours of your originally
scheduled one, or else pay your way on another airline,
would you fly them?  Most flights I've ever been on seem to
be less than half full.  If an airline could double the number
of passengers per flight, they could probably halve their fares.
People used to fly standby alot, and you weren't even guaranteed
a flight!

					Wm Leler
					tektronix!tekchips!wm