Archive-name: travel/air/handbook/part1
Last-Modified: Fri Jul 22 19:45:39 1994 by Mark Kantrowitz
Version: 1.13
Size: 62128 bytes

;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Airfare FAQ, Part 1 ********************************************
;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Written by Mark Kantrowitz

This post is a summary of useful information for air travelers. The
focus is on obtaining inexpensive air fares, although other topics are
also covered. It was previously posted under the title "FAQ: How to
Get Cheap Airtickets".

The information in this FAQ applies primarily to US domestic flights,
though some information may also apply to international flights.

Please mail comments, corrections, additions, suggestions, criticisms
and other information to mkant@cs.cmu.edu.

*** Copyright:

Copyright (c) 1989-94 by Mark Kantrowitz. All rights reserved.

This FAQ may be freely redistributed in its entirety without
modification provided that this copyright notice is not removed.  It
may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
(e.g., published for sale on CD-ROM, floppy disks, books, magazines,
or other print form) without the prior written permission of the
copyright holder.  Permission is expressly granted for this document
to be made available for file transfer from installations offering
unrestricted anonymous file transfer on the Internet.

This article is provided AS IS without any express or implied warranty.

*** Topics Covered:

Part 1:
  [1-0]  Obtaining the FAQ
  [1-1a] Standard Tricks: Advance Booking Discounts
  [1-1b] Advance Purchase Fares
  [1-2]  Nested/Overlapping Tickets Strategy
  [1-x]  Stopovers and Circle Trips
  [1-3]  Fare Classes
  [1-4]  Classes of Service
  [1-5]  Fare Types

  [1-6]  Special Fare Categories
  [1-7]  Children's Fares
  [1-8]  Clergy Fares
  [1-9]  Military Fares
  [1-10] Senior Citizen Fares
  [1-11] Student/Youth Fares
  [1-12] Family Fares
  [1-13] Conference Fares
  [1-14] Sympathy Fares, Emergency Fares
  [1-15] Refunds

  [1-16] Flying Standby
  [1-17] Getting Bumped
  [1-18] Special Travel Dates/Fare Sales
  [1-19] Moving Up the Return Flight
  [1-20] Hidden City Fares
  [1-21] Buying Someone Else's Nonrefundable Ticket

Part 2 (Travel Agents, Connections, Airports, Baggage):

   Travel Agents:
   [2-1]  Travel Agents
   [2-2]  Unusual Travel Agents: Commission Rebaters
   [2-3]  Consolidators
   [2-4]  Couriers
   [2-5]  Travel Agencies that Specialize in Students
   [2-6]  Visit USA
   [2-7]  Free Upgrades to First Class
   [2-8]  Companion Tickets
   [2-9]  Avoiding Travel Scams

   [2-10] Missed Connections
   [2-11] Getting There Faster

   [2-12] Airports Monopolized by One Carrier
   [2-13] Hub Cities

   Baggage:
   [2-14] Lost Baggage
   [2-15] Baggage Limits
   [2-16] Pets
   [2-17] Bicycles
   [2-18] Restrictions on Electronics 
   [2-19] X-ray Machines/Metal Detectors
   [2-20] Packing Tips/Checklist

Part 3 (Safety & Comfort, Frequent Flyers):

   Travel Safety, Comfort, and Convenience:
   [3-1]  Travel Advisories/Health Information
   [3-2]  Travel Safety
   [3-3]  Air Quality
   [3-4]  Smoke-Free Flights
   [3-5]  Special Meals
   [3-6]  Jetlag
   [3-7]  Pregnant Passengers
   [3-8]  Tips for Families Flying with Children
   [3-9]  Tips for Business Travelers
   [3-10] Exchanging Currency

   Frequent Flyers:
   [3-11] Frequent Flyer Programs
   [3-12] Premier FF Membership
   [3-13] Hotel Frequent Flyer Plans
   [3-14] Credit Card Voucher Offers
   [3-15] Telephone Companies
   [3-16] Discount Coupon Offers 

Part 4 (Appendices, Miscellaneous):

   Appendices:
   [4-1]  Airline Reservation Phone Numbers
   [4-2]  Flight Information
   [4-3]  On-line reservation services
   [4-4]  Complaints and Compliments
   [4-5]  Glossary
   [4-6]  Other Sources of Information
   [4-7]  Further Reading
   [4-8]  Phone Numbers Included in this FAQ
   
   Miscellaneous:
   [4-9]  IRS Rules Change
   [4-10] Airline Antitrust Litigation
   [4-11] Miscellaneous Notes

Search for [#] to get to question number # quickly.

*** Recent Changes:

;;; 1.13:
;;; 12-JUN-94 mk    Updated non-smoking flights section.
;;; 16-JUL-94 mk    Many small changes and updates.
;;; 16-JUL-94 mk    Added "Moving Up the Return Flight" based on a very good
;;;                 suggestion by Brian Noble.
;;; 16-JUL-94 mk    Added Air Quality section to part 2.
;;; 16-JUL-94 mk    Added Tips for Business Travelers to part 2.
;;; ****************************************************************
;;; 21-JUL-94 mk    Completely overhauled the Cheap Air Tickets FAQ:
;;;                 Reorganized, reformatted, new sections, new name, 
;;;                 split into several parts, etc. Some changes will 
;;;                 continue to occur over the next few months.
;;; ****************************************************************

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-0] Obtaining the FAQ

An updated version of this file is posted once a month on the 13th of
the month to the newsgroups rec.travel.air and news.answers. The
version date for the file is located in the header near the top of the
file.

In between postings, the latest version of this FAQ is available by
anonymous FTP from 
   ftp.cs.cmu.edu:/user/mkant/Travel/   [128.2.206.173]
using username "anonymous" and password "name@host" (substitute your
email address) or via AFS in the Andrew File System directory
   /afs/cs.cmu.edu/user/mkant/Public/Travel/
as the files airfare1.faq, airfare2.faq, airfare3.faq, and airfare4.faq.

Other files available from this directory include:
   bucket.faq       Edward Hasbrouck's FAQ on Bucket Shops and Consolidators 
   classes.txt      List of fare classes
   discounts.txt    Table of Airline Special Fare Discounts (29-JUL-92)
   em_intrfrnc.txt  Summary of EM Interference by Laurie Bechtler
   ff.faq           Joel Chan's Frequent Flyer FAQ
   flt_attdnt.txt   Description of the Job of a Flight Attendant
   iata.txt         List of worldwide airport IATA codes by Peter Loibl
   jetlag.txt     The ANL jet lag diet.
   online.faq       John Levine's FAQ on Online Computer Reservation Systems
   tourism.faq      Where to get tourist/travel information

The FAQ postings are also archived in the periodic posting archive on
   rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet/news.answers/travel/air/handbook/ [18.181.0.24]
If you do not have anonymous ftp access, you can access the archive by
mail server as well.  Send an E-mail message to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu
with "help" and "index" in the body on separate lines for more
information.

If you need to cite the FAQ for some reason, use the following format:
   Mark Kantrowitz, "Air Traveler's Handbook", rec.travel.air, <month>,
<year>,
   ftp.cs.cmu.edu:/user/mkant/Travel/airfare?.faq, mkant+@cs.cmu.edu.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-1a]  Standard Tricks: Advance Booking Discounts

Airlines give better fares to people who advance book because they are
trying to encourage people to book as early as possible. If the
airline were to lower fares just before flight time there would be a
flood of people (on random flights) at the last minute. Airlines need
an accurate estimate of the number of people and amount of baggage on
a flight so that they can load the proper amount of fuel.  (Meals and
beverages also have to be loaded.)

Moreover, people who book at the last minute are usually flying on
business, and therefore the business is paying for it.  People flying
for pleasure usually know weeks or months in advance, and can't afford
the prices that a business would pay. Thus it is to an airline's
advantage to set rates according to the major differences between
business and leisure travelers:
    o  Business travelers fly mostly between 9 and 5, whereas leisure
       travelers can fly offpeak hours. 
    o  Business travelers buy tickets on very short notice, whereas
       leisure travelers plan trips well in advance. 
    o  Business travelers do not stay over a weekend (= Saturday
       night), whereas leisure travelers do. 
So airlines typically give discounts for people who stay over a
weekend, flying offpeak hours, and purchasing tickets 7 days, 14 days,
21 days or 30 days in advance. 

For example, "Supersaver" or "Maxsaver" fares require that you buy
your roundtrip ticket 7 days, 14 days, or 30 days in advance, and that
you stay over a weekend (Saturday night). The price is usually the
average of the two one-way tickets. (E.g., a 2-week advance PGH/BOS
advance ticket is around $200 this way.) Since a regular 1-way ticket
is so much worse, it sometimes pays to buy a round-trip ticket and
throw away the other half (if you're only going one way). If you buy a
round trip ticket and throw away the other half, make the first leg of
the trip the destination, since some airlines will cancel the return
trip if you don't show up for the first leg. If you intend to skip ONE
leg of a multi-leg flight, tell this to your reservation agent in
advance, so that they can annotated your PNR to prevent subsequent
legs from being cancelled. (Note: You can't use this technique to
exploit a "hidden city" fare. You'll have to have a very good reason
for skipping a leg for the travel agent to allow it, and you may have
to pay a different fare to do so.)

For example, a round-trip to San Francisco from Pittsburgh with a
one-night stayover is $1,333. However, the cost of a Saturday night
stayover is only $479 if you order the ticket a week or two in
advance. Purchasing two round trip tickets, one originating from Pgh
and one from SF, and then using one half of each round trip ticket
saves you $375.

Note that for many airlines the discount fares depend solely on the
date of the first leg of the trip. The price does not vary no matter
when the return flight is (so long as you stay over a Saturday night).
You could buy a flight with one leg in March and the return in
November, and it would cost the same as if the return was in March.
For some of the lowest fares, however, there is now a 30-day maximum
stay. Staying more than 30 days often increases the fare by about 25%.
 
If you travel on offpeak hours and low volume days, the rates are
cheaper. Thus to guarrantee a low cost flight, you have to be very
flexible about where you are going, what time and day you are leaving,
and how long you want to stay.

Also important is when you make the reservation. If you make the
reservation for an offpeak flight during the peak season (say, make a
reservation for February just before Thanksgiving), you may be charged
the peak rates. After the holidays some airlines lower their discount
fares to attract customers. So you may be able to get a better fare by
making your reservation right after the holidays.

If you notice that the fare for your flight has been lowered after you
bought the ticket, try calling the airline. Sometimes they will refund
the difference between the price you paid and the lower fare. (You may
have to go to the airport to get the ticket rewritten at the lower
fare.) For example, USAir will refund the difference less a service
charge, or give a travel voucher (credit) for the difference with no
service charge.

According to a Wall Street Journal article by James S. Hirsch, (July
30, 1993) many airlines now test fare increases by raising prices on
the weekend (Friday night through Sunday night). If other airlines
don't match the increases, the fares return to normal on Monday. So
you should avoid purchasing tickets on the weekend. (This works around
the Justice Department consent decree that prevents airlines from
signalling planned fare increases in the computer reservation
systems.)

Hirsch also reported that many airlines have increased the $25 charge
for changing advanced purchase tickets to $30 or $35. Note that this
is often a minimum fee -- you'll probably have to pay the full
difference in price if the new ticket price is much higher. Airlines
are using these measures to discourage passengers from buying tickets
during a fare war and later changing the time of flight or
destination. If you go to one of the airline's ticket agents (not a
travel agent), some airlines will reissue a ticket at the lower fare
without fee if the difference is refunded in the form of a voucher for
future travel.

In addition to the Saturday night stay requirement, many airlines now
give discounts for travel midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) when
a Saturday night stay is involved. For example, Northwest discount
coupons recently had this restriction. Most leisure travelers like to
travel Sunday-Sunday, or at least not miss a large part of the week.
Business travelers, of course, don't like to stay over the weekend.

When making your reservation through an airline ticket agent or
through a travel agent, always ask for the lowest possible fare. Don't
just give them specific dates/times and ask them for a low fare --
tell them that your plans are flexible, and you'd like to know what
the low fare is. If you're too specific on the flight details, and
don't say that you're looking for the cheapest possible fare, you
might not get the best price.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-1b] Advance Purchase Fares

[Note: This section to be merged into preceding section.]

   Typically, tickets must be purchased 4, 7, 14, 21, or 30 days
in advance of the departure date. All require confirmed reservations.
Seats are always limited. Most do not permit changes/cancellations,
and those that do will usually charge you.
   
   Some require a roundtrip ticket, though there are some that
give lower rates for one-way tickets. Most do not permit open-jaw
travel (most require circle-trip for excursion fares). Some permit
stopovers, and may or may not charge you for the privilege (typically
$15-30 per stopover). Fares are often seasonal.

   For those that have a minimum and maximum stay period (e.g.,
stay over the weekend, must return 150 days after departure), the day
of departure is not included as part of the minimum and maximum stay period.

   Children's rates are usually discounted against the applicable
fare. (Some airlines now apply children's discounts against the
highest fare only.) As usual, children must carry proof of age.

   Note that fares are almost always not applicable to/from
intermediate points. This means a ticket from Boston to Chicago
passing through Pittsburgh could be cheaper than a ticket from Boston
to Pittsburgh! But, of course, you can get off at Pittsburgh so long
as you don't have checked bags nor have subsequent legs on the same
ticket.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-2]  Nested/Overlapping Tickets Strategy

If you travel regularly to a particular destination, but don't
stay over weekends, you can get the cheaper weekend rates by
staggering your tickets. I.e., if you're flying from A to B and back
Monday and Wednesday of Week 1, and the same Week 2, instead of buying
roundtrip tickets for each week, buy a roundtrip ticket leaving A
Monday of Week 1 and returning Wednesday of Week 2, and a second
roundtrip ticket leaving B Wednesday of Week 1 and returning to B
Monday of Week 2. This works out to be precisely the same flights, but
since both tickets are over a weekend, you get the cheaper rate. The
only problem is that you have to know your schedule in advance to make
this work. Using the Pgh-SF example from above, this method would save
you $1708 on a pair of midweek round trip flights.

If this seems confusing, perhaps the following diagram will make
things clearer.

  ---                            ------
  |   A ----1----->>---MON---- B      |
  |                              ---  |
  |   A ----2-----<<---FRI---- B   |  |
  ---                              |  |
  |   A ----3----->>---MON---- B   |  |
  |                              ---  |
  |   A ----4-----<<---FRI---- B      |
  ---                            ------

The two round trip flights consist of two outgoing flights (1, 3) and
two returning flights (2, 4). Normally these are grouped as on the
left, with flight #1 from A to B being paired with flight #2 from B to
A, and similarly for flights #3 and #4. The result is two midweek
flights, neither of which is over a Saturday night. But we could also
pair flight #1 with flight #4, and flight #2 with flight #3, as shown
on the right.  Then the middle pair of flights (#2 and #3) becomes a
round trip with its origin at your destination, and both sets of round
trip tickets are over a Saturday night.

The 30-day maximum stay on discount fares prevents you from using this
overlapping round trip tickets trick if you travel to a destination
infrequently (say, every six months). If your trips are more than 30
days apart, here's a new trick to use. Buy two round trip discount
tickets (weekend stay) per trip, using one for the outgoing trip and
one for the return, and then turn in the return portion of each ticket
for credit towards your next trip. Even with the $25 or so processing
charge per ticket for crediting and reissuing the ticket, it is still
cheaper to do this than to buy a single round-trip ticket without a
weekend stay.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-x]  Stopovers and Circle Trips

If you're flying to two destinations, ask your travel agent about the
rates for stopovers and circle trips.  A stopover is useful when you
want to stay for one or two days at a connecting city, and costs only an
extra $20-$50. A circle trip applies when your intermediate
destination isn't a connecting city, and costs less than a pair of
round trip tickets, even when your point of origin is a connecting
city for the middle leg of the circle trip. This is especially true
when one of the stays isn't over a Saturday night.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-3]  Fare Classes

When airlines set their fares, they divide their seating into
"classes", which are based on an analysis of past passenger purchases.
Suppose you have a 100 seat airliner going from DC to SF. The rates
might break down on a particular day as follows:

   30 seats at $315 round trip, 30 days in advance
   20 seats at $350 RT, 21 days in advance
   20 seats at $375 RT, 14 days in advance
   20 seats at $400 RT, 7 days in advance
   10 seats at $450 RT, full fare, available until the last minute.

Now if the time has elapsed within a given price group, then the fare
will go up to the rate of the next price group. If they sell the quota
of tickets for a price group, even if the time has not elapsed, then
they can only sell you tickets at the next rate group price (which is
naturally higher). So it can pay to make your reservations way in
advance. (The number of seats available at each fare varies from day
to day, depending on the airline's yield management algorithm.)

Actually, it would be more accurate to say that airlines distinguish
between classes of service and types of fares. A discount ticket
(fare) for first class travel (service) could, in theory, be cheaper
than an advance purchase ticket (fare) for thrift travel in the first
class compartment (service). The best way to describe it is as a
series of overlapping tiers of fares.

There are five regular classes of service: First, Business, Standard,
Coach and Thrift. Standard is practically nonexistent these days.
Fares usually drop with lower class service. For each class except
Standard there are six main types of reduced-fare tickets: discounted,
night, offpeak, weekend, advance purchase, and excursion fare.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-4]  Classes of Service

The following chart gives some of the letters used to designate each
class of service. Note that Fn means Night/Offpeak Coach in the First
Class compartment, and Yn means Night/Offpeak Coach in other than the
First Class compartment.

                        Regular Premium Discounted      Night/Offpeak
First Class             F       P       A               Fn
Business Class          C       J       D               Cn
Standard                S       W                       Bn
Coach Economy           Y               B, H, M, Q, T   Qn, Yn
Thrift                  K               L, V            Vn, Kn
Supersonic              R
No Reservation Service  U (Seat guaranteed)
No Reservation Service  E (No reservation allowed)

In reality there is no difference between classes F and P, nor between
classes C and J. The Q class is usually used for discounted student fares.

If you want the cheapest fares, look at the Thrift and Coach Economy
classes. 

Airlines have started eliminating First Class, because many companies
now have policies that won't let their employees claim a first class
ticket on their travel expenses.  Instead, the airlines have started
upgrading their Business Class as a marketing ploy (and, of course,
company policies are now requiring employees to travel coach).

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-5]  Fare Types

The following lists some of the letters used to designate different
types of fares. This is distinct from class of service. A number
(e.g., 7 or 14) usually means how many days in advance the ticket must
be bought.

   Miscellaneous
      AP   Advance Purchase
      EX   Excursion Fare
      B    Capacity-controlled Excursion Fares
      SW   Offpeak; Saturday or Sunday
      W    Weekend
      X    Midweek
      US   48 contiguous states (not including alaska/hawaii)
   
   Economy
      KH   Weekend
      KL   Midweek/Offpeak
      MH   Weekend (Discount Fare)
      ML   Midweek/Offpeak (Discount Fare)
      L    Capacity-controlled Inventory
   
   Standard
      SH   Peak
      SL   Offpeak
      V    Offpeak
   
   Coach
      B    Capacity-controlled Inventory
      BN   Night Coach
      H    Capacity-controlled Inventory, Coach/Night Coach
      V    Offpeak
      YH   Weekend
      YL   Midweek/Offpeak
   
   Super Coach
      QH   Weekend; applies Fri-Sun
      QL   Midweek; applies Mon-Thur

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-6]  Special Fare Categories
   
All airlines have special rate categories, but you have to ask for
them by name, since the agents are usually not familiar with them.
You may even have to talk to the agent's supervisor. Below is a brief
listing of different special fare categories, followed by a more in
depth discussion of standby fares.

Also, see preceding discussion of classes of service and fare types.
For example, on TWA, class K, V, YC, and M fares are the cheapest.

Note: Just because you qualify for a special fare category doesn't
mean that it is the cheapest fare possible. Shop around. By being
flexible with your travel plans, you may be able to save even more.
When the special fares are discounted against full fare coach prices,
you can often do better by purchasing a supersaver or other advance
booking fare.  Of course, if your special fare discount may be
combined with other offers (e.g., 5% discount for using the official
airline of a conference to travel to the conference), you win both
ways.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-7]  Children's Fares

Children under 2 years of age travel free on US domestic flights.
(That is, children who have not reached their second birthday at the
date of commencement of travel.) To be more accurate, the child must
not occupy a separate seat (sits on its parent's lap), and must be
accompanied by a fare paying adult passenger 12 years of age and over
(the lap in which it sits). Such children do not get a baggage
allowance. Additional children under 2 are subject to regular
children's fares. On international flights you need a "lap child"
ticket which typically costs about $100 (10% of the regular fare). 

Fares for children (age 2-12) accompanied by a fare paying adult
passenger and occupying a separate seat are cheaper than fares for
unaccompanied children. Some carriers will not accept unaccompanied
children under five years of age (some 8 years, some 12). Fares for
accompanied children range from 50% to 100% of an adult fare 
(1/2 fare, 2/3 fare, 3/4 fare, 80%, 90%, full fare). Fares for
unaccompanied children range from 50% of adult fare to 125% of an
adult fare (1/2 fare, 2/3 fare, 3/4 fare, full fare, 1-1/4 fare). 
Nowaways, 2/3 fare seems to be the most common children's fare.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-8]  Clergy Fares

Clergy have been entitled to discounts by various airlines in the
past, but as of May 1994, none were participating in such programs.
Qualified parties would be advised to check with airlines at the time
of their booking to see if these programs have been reinstated.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-9]  Military Fares

US military personnel traveling at their own expense on
authorized leave or pass may get signicantly cheaper fares. Discharged
military personnel must complete all travel within 7 days of discharge
date. Valid active duty US green identification card or separation
orders must be presented. USAir has a 50% military discount. 

Also, any military person who is on active duty and either on TDY
(temporary duty), emergency leave or regular leave, or any retired
military person may sign up for space available travel on
pre-scheduled military flights to any air force base (e.g., Hawaii,
Boston, Florida). Active duty personnel have priority over retired
personnel, and space is allocated in order of signup. Few flights,
however, are scheduled more than 24 hours in advance, and you may need
to go to your destination by a very roundabout route, since not every
base has a lot of space-available flights. The cost is free from most
bases, but some tack on a $10 or $20 charge for admin purposes. For
long flights, they will sell you a box-lunch for $2.40. The planes may
not be as comfortable as commercial flights. There are numerous books
on space-available flights that military people can pick up at their
PX/BX.   They should also contact the PAX representative at their
nearest base for more specific information.
   
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-10] Senior Citizen Fares

Certain airlines provide reduced fares for passengers 65 (sometimes
62) years of age and older. Passengers must carry proof of age
(passport, birth certificate, driver's license or medicare card). The
typical discount is 10 percent. Some programs provided a booklet of
discount couposn, or sell several tickets at a sharply discounted
rate.  Seats are usually limited.  In some cases, membership in the
AARP will qualify you for the reduced fares. (The AARP's 10 percent
discount deal with American Airlines ended in 1992 when the fare war
broke out.) Airlines with special fares include: American, America
West, Continental, Delta, Northwest, Southwest Airlines, TWA, United,
and USAir. Be sure to ask if there are any special fares for senior
citizens, if you qualify.  Many travel agents are reluctant to ask a
customer if they are a senior citizen, because they are afraid the
customer might be offended.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-11] Student/Youth Fares

Some airlines give discounted fares to full-time students of an
accredited school, college or university who are at least 12 years of
age. Student ID card must be carried and displayed at the request of
the carrier. Some restrict the age of the student to under some age
(e.g., 22, 24, 26 years of age). Stopovers are not permitted, and some
require reservations at least 7 days before departure.

The status of such discounts varies considerably. For example, the
USAir student discount was cancelled on May 30, 1992, as a consequence
of the American fare restructuring. As of June 1993, the program was
reinstated on a limited scale, primarily on short-haul east-coast
flights, with an age limit of 24. On June 1, 1994, they cancelled the
program, and replaced it with a more restrictive youth fare. The
details of this program are as follows:

   +  Maximum age 22.
   +  Reservations must be made 7 days in advance.
   +  Saturday night stay required.
   +  Round trips only, must be a non-stop flight.
   +  Not offered in all markets, and the amount of the discount
      varies. The best discount seems to be 30% off.
   +  The discount seems to not be combinable with supersaver fares.
   +  You must show proof of age when making a reservation.
   +  The discount is limited to domestic travel.

Students may purchase discount books of 10 tickets on the Trump (now
USAir) shuttle for $499. Delta has a similar program for their shuttle.
Age restrictions can be as low as 18-22 on these tickets (Continental
18-22, USAir 18-24 some routes, 18-22 others, Delta is 18-24). Times are
restricted from 10am to 2:30 pm and after 7 pm. 

A variety of discounts are available if you have an International
Student Identity Card. Besides offering proof of student status, the
ID provides discounts on museums and events, air fare, 24-hour
traveler's assistance, and health insurance. Ask your travel agent for
details on how to get such a card and what discounts are available.
All Council Travel travel agencies sell the International Student ID
Cards. They are rather cheap -- $17 for students aged 12 to 25 -- and
well worth the price. However, some people have found that their
regular university ID works just as well for most of the discounts.
For an application and a free magazine, call the Council on
International Educational Exchange (CIEE) at 800-438-2643.

Youth fares: Passenger must be between 12 and 22 (25 for international
travel) years of age. Seats may be limited. Tickets must be purchased
from the point of origin. Some require picture identification such as
Youth Fare identification Card, birth certificate, government ID card
or drivers license. Southwest gives the offpeak rate for *all* flights
for youth (21 & under), although this is still more expensive than
their supersaver fares.
   
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-12] Family Fares

Some carriers offer discounts on family travel. For the purposes of
the discounts, a family is defined as a husband and wife with or
without accompanying children age 2-17, or one parent with one or more
accompanying children age 2-17. Age restrictions on children differ
from airline to airline (some set the maximum age at 20 or 21 years;
and some break children into two classes, 12 & under and 12-21). Some
include legal guardian and grandparents within the definition of
parent. It is usually not necessary for the family to travel under a
common surname. Proof of family relationship must be established to
the satisfaction of the carrier and all family members must travel
together for the entire trip. Fares are typically 100% for first
family member, 50% each additional. Some have further discounts.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-13] Conference Fares

If you're flying to a meeting or conference, airlines will often offer
a conference discount. This must be arranged ahead of time by the
conference organizers and only holds for one particular airline. This
airline is designated as the "official" airline of the conference, and
is advertised in the registration brochure. Discounts are generally
40% off of full coach or 5% off of the best supersaver fare, with
travel within 3 days of the meeting. The conference organizers receive
one free round trip ticket for every 20 conference attendees who use
the airline.

See also "Moving Up the Return Flight" [1-19].

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-14] Sympathy Fares, Emergency Fares
   
If you have to go to a funeral, most airlines will give you
50% off of the discounted rate, at very short notice. They call this
the sympathy fare. Similarly for a medical emergency. For example,
Continental will waive advance purchase requirements for cheap fares
for an emergency. This is their bereavement rate for people who have
to attend funerals. Other airlines that do this are United and USAir
("compassionate fare"). American gives 50% off of the non-discounted
rate, and will ask you for the name, address and phone number of the
funeral home. This is a tradition carried over from the "funeral fare"
of the railroad days. Airlines do this because it is simply good PR,
and doesn't cost them all that much. Some airlines will only allow
immediate relatives to get a sympathy fare.

[As of 4/30/93, American and United offered 17% discount on
unrestricted coach, USAir 50%.]

In any case you have to ask and sometimes be persistent as these are
nonstandard and not widely publicized policies. Many low level airline
workers are not aware of them or do not have the authority to allow them.

United "Rule 120" describes the rules governing sympathy fares.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-15] Refunds

In the same vein, many airlines will refund a ticket, even a
nonrefundable one, for good cause. Medical emergencies, jury duty, and
a death in the family generally qualify as a good cause for not using
a ticket.  Some sort of proof must be provided (death certiicate, note
from doctor), and it is completely up to the airline as to whether or
not the particular instance warrants a refund. Some airlines may issue
a new ticket or provide a flight credit voucher instead of offering a
refund.

A useful trick for normal circumstances: When they ask for your name
for printing on the ticket, use your first initial instead of your
full first name. (Many airlines now require your full first name, even
if you purchase the ticket through a travel agent.) Thus if you can't
use your "non-transferrable non-refundable" ticket, your spouse or
some other member of your family might be able to.

Another trick is to have your travel agent talk to the airline,
assuming you used him to purchase the ticket. Sometimes they will be
able to swing a deal.

Nontransferable tickets may still be useable by other people in your
organization, if the address listed on the ticket was your business
address.

Unused nonrefundable tickets can often be applied as a credit toward
another nonrefundable ticket of equal or higher value on the same
airline, less a small reticketing fee of $25 to $35. You'll also have
to pay any difference in the fares, and you can do this for up to one
year after the date of purchase. So if you bought a non-refundable
ticket and decided to not use it, don't throw it away. If you only
used part of the ticket (e.g., the originating flight but not the
return), you probably can't do this; these policies are for completely
unused tickets.

Normally a reservation will cancel out automatically if you don't
purchase a ticket within 24 hours. However, if you ask the airline to
invoice you, usually this timeout is extended to 10 days to allow
enough time for the invoice to reach you. You can still pay the
invoice using a credit card. If you don't pay the invoice, the
reservation cancels out at the end of the 10 day period. I was once
able to get the 10 day period extended, but that was because the
airline had transposed digits in my zip code, causing the invoice to
arrive after the 10 day period had expired.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-16] Flying Standby

Flying standby used to be one of the cheapest ways to travel. The idea
was that an empty seat doesn't earn the airline any money. So some
airlines would sell special fare "standby tickets".  Using such a
ticket you were NOT guarranteed a seat on a particular flight, but on
the next flight with empty seats. You'd be enplaned on a flight
subject to the availability of space at departure time.  This was only
after all passengers with reservations for the flight have been
boarded.  Passengers from a previous flight who were bumped also had
priority. No stopovers were permitted on standby fares.

Since advance reservations were not accepted, you had to get to the
gate early to put yourself down on the standby list.  If it was a busy
day and the flights are full, you would have to wait several hours to
get a seat, or maybe not get a seat at all.  A standby ticket didn't
guarrantee you a seat, but if you did not absolutely, positively have
to be there tomorrow, you could get some good deals.

But the days when students could hang out at the airport and fly
standby for dirt cheap prices are long gone. The term "standby" is
still used, but doesn't mean what it used to:

   1. Most airlines no longer sell standby tickets at a special
      fare, but will sell you a standby ticket at regular fare. In
      other words, if they have space on the flight, the gate agent or
      ticket agent will sell you a ticket for the flight on the spot.
      All this means is you can buy a full fare ticket on the spur of
      the moment.

   2. Nonrefundable, nonchangeable tickets can often be used for
      standby travel on the same or similar route (sometimes with a
      slight surcharge). This most often comes up if you missed your
      flight, but you may be able to use unused flight coupons in 
      this manner. For example, if you bought a ticket but didn't go
      for some reason (a reason that didn't entitle you to a refund), the
      ticket may still be usable for standby travel on the same airline.
      (Your best bet with such a ticket, however, is to have your
      travel agent or airline credit it towards your next ticket.
      You'll probably have to pay a fee, but it's better than throwing
      away the ticket.) All this is often at the whim of the gate
      agent, and is based on the notion that a ticket is often
      designated as being good for travel on the airline for one year
      from the date of issue. Your luck will vary by airline and gate agent.

   3. If you're on a later flight but get to the airport early,
      check with the attendant at the gate. You may be able to get on the
      earlier flight is there's space available (but this may result in your
      getting no "snack" or losing your special meal). This works even
      for "non-changeable" tickets. 

Airlines stopped the practice of selling standby tickets for a variety
of reasons:

   1. Even if a seat isn't taken, putting somebody in the seat still
      costs the airline some money (e.g., fuel). 

   2. Standby travel played havok with airline load management programs.
      Airlines were sometimes faced with having to unload fuel to
      change the weight distribution of the aircraft because of a
      sudden appearance of several standby passengers.

   3. Some people would "ensure" the availability of standby seats by
      making a large number of regular reservations, and then an hour
      before the flight release the block of seats, virtually ensuring
      that standby passengers will get aboard at cheap standby fares.
      This caused airlines to overbook flights, and eliminated their
      ability to schedule their flights accurately. Since the
      elimination of standby tickets, overbooking errors have dropped
      significantly. (Another result of this practice is the automatic
      cancellation of unpaid reservations after 24 hours.)

   4. Airlines felt that they were losing regular business to standby travel.

Flying standby, however, may be making a comeback. In 1993, some
airlines had special one-day fares for folks traveling on Christmas
and New Years. These holidays are the nadir of the travel season, so
by offering these fares, the airlines were able to increase their
business on flights they had to fly anyway. (Yes, airlines still have
to fly the routes, even with empty planes, because scheduling is so
complex. For example, the plane in Atlanta might need to fly to Boston
so that it can be used on the Boston-Washington route later in the
next day.)  Now these holiday fares weren't true standby fares, but
the concept was similar. Since most flights these days fly at 85-95%
of capacity, one of these days an airline is going to get the bright
idea of reinstating standby fares in one variation or another. For
example, some airlines now sell discount flight coupon booklets to
senior citizens; the coupons may be used for standby travel. And of
course, US air force personnel can fly standby on some US air force
planes on a space available basis for dirt cheap prices, but with no
amenities (and maybe no real seat either, but strapped to webbing on
the wall).

If you are flying standby one way or another, here's some advice:

   -  Make sure you get to the gate EARLY. If several people are
      flying standby, you want to make sure that your name is first on
      the list.  Note that connecting passengers, bumped passengers,
      etc., get priority over local boarding standbys. 

   -  Days which are bad for getting bumped are usually good days for 
      standby seats. Don't fly standby on the day before Thanksgiving
      or the Sunday after, you won't get a seat. On Thanksgiving day
      itself, you're likely to find a seat.

   -  On really busy days it might pay to show up early for the
      *first* flight of the day, since standbys who don't make it can
      "roll over" to the next flight. 

Some airlines will only allow "same day" standby travel (i.e., you
overslept and missed your flight, and will take a flight on the same
route later that day). Others will not allow you to fly standby on a
flight if all the seats in your fare class have sold out, even if
there are empty seats available. If the agent at the check-in counter
gives you trouble, go directly to the gate and see what happens. 
[Agents at the check-in counter are under more pressure to enforce the
rules than gate agents, who have some discretionary power. If you can
avoid dealing with the agents at the check-in counter, (e.g., no
checked baggage), so much the better.] If you want to try flying
standby on one airline using another airline's ticket, bypass the
check-in agent and go directly to the gate.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-17] Getting Bumped

[Note: The comments in this section apply to domestic flights only.
US Department of Transportation rules apply only to flights between
points in the US. Airlines do not need to give any compensation for
international flights, so what, if anything, you get for an
involuntary bump is entirely up to the airline.]

Airlines tend to overbook their flights in case of no-shows.
Occasionally this will mean that more people show up with confirmed
reservations than there are seats on the plane. (Or if the flight is a
particularly full one, it may exceed the weight limit even with empty
seats.) The airline will ask if there's anyone willing to be bumped
from the flight in exchange for compensation (e.g., USAir will give
you a free round-trip ticket anywhere in North America). The airline
will then put you on the next available flight to your destination,
along with your free ticket. Vouchers are typically valid for only a
year from date of issue. But if you ask *before you get the ticket*,
you can sometimes get it extended for a month or two beyond the year
limitation.

So another way to reduce the cost of flying is to volunteer to be
bumped. You can maximize your chances of being bumped by purchasing a
confirmed reservation on flights that are most likely to be full. A
good time is 7-10 am or 4-7 pm on a weekday. These are the times most
businessmen fly (trying to make early morning meetings or to get home
for dinner in the evening), and hence when the airline is most likely
to be overbooked. Airlines are also likely to be overbooked on Sunday
nights and the beginning and end of holidays, since that is when
non-businessmen typically fly. For example, right before Thanksgiving
and the Sunday after are prime bumping times. Receiving a free
roundtrip ticket effectively cuts your air travel costs in half. And
if you get bumped while using a previous free bump ticket, it gets
even cheaper.

If you want to be bumped and notice that the flight looks full, get to
the gate as early as possible and ask the gate agent whether they are
overbooked. If they are, they will need volunteers. Ask them to put
your name on the bump list (aka "bump queue"). Bump tickets are
offered on a first come/first served basis, so you want to get your
name near the top of the list. This will give you priority if there
are only a few bumps.  Note, however, that by pre-volunteering, you're
only likely to get a free ticket in addition to rebooking on a flight
later that day. If nobody volunteers and you wait until they ask for
volunteers, you can sometimes up the ante, depending on how desperate
they get. (Some airlines give all volunteers the same thing, no matter
when they volunteered. Others will process you as soon as you
volunteer, so the later you volunteer, the better the incentive.) In
general, you should put your name on the bump list, and don't wait
until the airline calls for volunteers. Enough people volunteer ahead
of time these days that if you don't put your name on the list, you
won't have the opportunity to be bumped (except on very rare
occasions, when not enough people volunteer).

When you get your bump ticket and are being rebooked on a later
flight, if the delay is a few hours, ask the gate agent if they can
give you a meal voucher. This voucher, which is worth $5-$10, can be
used at airport restaurants to get something to eat. Not every airline
and not every gate agent will give you one, and they certainly won't
give you one if you don't ask for it, but sometimes they will. If you
have any other special requirements (e.g., you want extra frequent
flyer credits, you want the free ticket to be good for an extra month,
etc.) it doesn't hurt to ask.

If you have a confirmed reservation, and you notice the flight is
overbooked but first class is underbooked and you don't necessarily
want to be bumped, try being the last person on line. If you are lucky
the coach and business class will be full, and they will have to
upgrade you to first class at no charge.  (Also, having a pre-issued
boarding pass will decrease your chances of an involuntary bump.) This
is risky, though, because you might wind up being bumped anyway, so
only do it if you don't care whether you'll be bumped.

It always pays to volunteer to be bumped, even if the flight isn't
overbooked. If the airline needs adjacent seating for a family, they
will sometimes bump you into first class if you are in a row by
yourself.

Good days to get bumped include: Wednesday before Thanksgiving, Sunday
after; couple days before and after Christmas; ditto with New Years.
Friday afternoons, evenings, and Sunday afternoons and evenings also
bump a lot.

If the airline still has plenty of coach seats a day or so before the
flight, it is unlikely that they will bump.

   Here's what some airlines usually give volunteers:
      Delta, USAir:  Open roundtrip
        (Delta requires reservations three days before flight time on
        bump tickets.)

      United: Travel voucher in increments of $100 based on how long you have
      to wait for your next flight (e.g., 2 hour wait is $200), up to
      a maximum of $300. You can also ask for a food voucher.

      Continental: domestic roundtrip ticket. Sometimes offers a
      dollar amount in credit to be used towards any Continental
      flight (e.g., $300).

      American, America West, Southwest, Northwest:  $$ off another
      ticket (usually $150 to $300; Northwest generally around $300;
      American has been known to go as high as $1000.)
      Dollar-denominated vouchers are not subject to tax, so they
      stretch further. Amounts depend on the degree of overbooking of
      the flight. United sometimes will also issue a
      dollar-denominated voucher. 

      United bumps more than average, Delta less. 

      Air Canada offers $150 cash or $300 in travel vouchers.

If you are bumped and the next flight out is the next day, the airline
may offer you overnight accomodation in addition, especially if you
are bumped while away from home.

Most bump tickets (vouchers) are non-transferable, so you must use
them yourself. 

If you are bumped (voluntarily or involuntarily) and have checked
baggage, the airline will not remove your bags from the plane. The bags
will continue on to your destination and wait there until you arrive. 

If you get bumped or your flight is canceled and need to stay at a
hotel overnight, hotels near the airport will often give you
a substantial discount if you ask for it (50% discount is not unheard
of). Ask for the "Distressed Passenger Rate". Airlines also have
overnight kits they can give you. 

A flight being cancelled is *not* the same as being bumped. Bumping
occurs only when the carrier has more passengers with confirmed
tickets on the flight than seats. You can get compensation if you are
bumped, but not if the flight is cancelled.

If airline delays cause you extra expense, the airlines may be willing
to help you out. For example, if the airline delay caused you to miss
the cheap bus shuttle service to downtown, the airline may be willing
to pay the difference between cab fare and shuttle fare. But in
general, there aren't any policies for compensation (e.g., meals, hotel,
etc.) that must be given to bumped and delayed passengers. Some
airlines are very nice and will give you food coupons if you ask, some
won't. 

Under Department of Transportation rules, an involuntarily bumped
traveler who is delayed more than one hour but less than two on a
domestic flight is entitled to $200 or 100 percent of the one-way
fare, whichever is less (the airline must also honor the original
ticket).  For delays longer than two hours, the compensation doubles.
Airlines can offer you a travel voucher (for a free domestic
round-trip ticket) in lieu of cash, but must give you the cash if
that's what you want. Airlines like bumped volunteers because free
travel costs them less than the cash compensation they're required to
offer involuntarily bumped passengers. (If the involuntarily bumped
passengers are put on a flight which brings them to their destination
within an hour of the original flight time, the airline has met its
requirement.) Anything more is strictly the policy of the airline,
which is stated in its Conditions of Carriage statement. (To obtain
this statement, get it either from your travel agent or by writing to
the customer affairs office of your airline. Be sure to ask for the
full copy of the conditions; otherwise they'll give you just a three
page summary of the limitations of liability sections.) Note that
these rules do NOT apply to delayed passengers in general, just to
bumped passengers.

Note that if you don't show up at the gate 15 minutes before
departure, the airline can involuntarily bump you and not owe you
anything. 

There are no rules governing compensation for volunteers -- airlines
can offer as little or as much as it takes to bid you off the flight.
   Delta restricts reservations using volunteer bumped vouchers 
   to two days in advance.

Re-booking: Most volunteers are routinely booked on another flight
within a few hours, but re-routing isn't a legal requirement. Before
giving up your seat, ask when the next flight leaves, whether you'll
have a confirmed or standby reservation and (if the flight is with
another carrier) whether you'll have to pay additional fare.
Negotiating: Most airline managers can escalate compensation offers in
an attempt to get enough volunteers. So you might get a better deal by
simply asking for one. American Airlines, which has the lowest rate of
involuntary bumpees in the industry, tends to be the most generous
with compensation for volunteers.

Sometimes, when all of the airline's flights are full, they will
reroute you on another airline. However, if you are flying on a free
ticket (e.g., frequent flyer ticket, previous bump ticket), they can't 
endorse your ticket over to the other airline. So they'll have to send
you out on another flight later that day. If this happens and
"inconveniences" you (i.e., you have to wait another hour or so), you
may be able to weasel something else out of the airline -- a roll of
quarters for the pinball machine, use of their club facilities, first
class accomodations on the later flight, meal voucher, or something.

If you volunteer and they don't need to bump you, you don't lose your
seat. If you volunteer, they need you, and you change your mind, you
may lose your seat, and wind up in a random seat. That is, of course,
if the airline decides to accommodate you. Once you've volunteered and
they've accepted your offer, you can't really reneg on it.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-18] Special Travel Dates/Fare Sales

There are several days of the year when air travel hits rock bottom,
like December 25 and the 4th of July. Airlines can't simply reduce
their operations on these days, because of scheduling difficulties. A
flight from San Jose to Boston must still fly on schedule, even if
there are no passengers on board, because that plane must be in Boston
the next day when the normal load resumes.

An empty seat doesn't earn the airline any money. So several airlines
have started special one-day fare sales on peak-minimum days. For
example, a round trip ticket from Pittsburgh to Boston on the Sunday
before the 4th of July cost only $100. The catch was that you had to fly
out after noon on Saturday and return by midnight Sunday.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-19] Moving Up the Return Flight

Departure dates on non-changeable tickers are inviolable -- you can't
change them without running into major obstacles. Return flights,
however, are sometimes a bit more flexible. You probably can't change
them before the departure, but sometimes you can change them afterwards.

For example, suppose you're flying to a conference that takes place
mid-week, but have to buy tickets that include a Saturday night stay.
Paying for an extra one or two day stay in a hotel (or student
housing) is cheaper than paying a full-price midweek fare.  So you
need to pick a Saturday night, either the one before the conference or
the one after. To take advantage of the flexibility on return flights,
book the flight to include the Saturday night *after* the conference.
On the night before you want to leave, call the airline and tell them
you'd like to return early. If they have space available, they'll let
you return early (possibly with a $35 change fee). For example, if you
want to fly out on Friday, call them Thursday night. This isn't flying
standby, because they'll actually give you a reservation for the
earlier return.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-20] Hidden City Fares

A hidden city fare occurs when a flight from point A to point B
happens to make a connection in point C and is cheaper than a direct
flight from point A to point C. This is a quirk of the way in which
airlines price their routes, which has little to do with the distance
flown. The prices are driven by market conditions. Prices drop when
there is a lot of competition on a route. The flight from A to B might
be a very busy route, with several airlines serving that market, while
the A-C and C-B routes might be not as busy. Usually such hidden city
fares occur when A and C aren't hubs for the carrier in question, but
B is, and B is dominated by the airline. So the airline routes you
through B, but charges you less than if you were to purchase two
round-trip tickets..

Theoretically, you could buy a ticket from A to B, get off at
point C, and throw away the B to C portion, saving some money, if
point C was your ultimate destination.  Airlines frown on this
practice, and taking advantage of a hidden city fare is explicitly
forbidden by their rules. If you happen to skip a leg of your flight
(e.g., logged as a no-show on the airline's computer), the airline has
the right to cancel all subsequent legs, and will do so to discourage
folks from using hidden-city fares. So the only case in which you can
"safely" take advantage of a hidden-city fare is when you're taking a
one-way flight. If you buy a round-trip ticket from A to B through C,
skip the C to B leg, and try to board the return flight at B or C,
you'll find that your reservation has been cancelled and you'll be
required to buy a new ticket at the full-price one-way fare.

You can't take advantage of a hidden city fare if you've checked any
baggage, as your baggage will be sent through to your ultimate
destination. 

Airlines have started to really crack down on the use of hidden city
fares. They can not only cancel subsequent flights on their own lines,
but also recommend cancellation of subsequent flights on other
carriers. They've programmed their airline reservation systems to
watch out for hidden-city reservations, flagging potential violations
in the passenger's record, and in some cases will automatically cancel
all subsequent legs if one leg is skipped. Even if the reservation
system doesn't automatically cancel the subsequent legs, the agent at
check-in will see the warning flag and will be very suspicious of any
skipped legs.

Some airlines (e.g., Delta) have a practice of checking you in for all
outbound flights at the point of origin. But this doesn't make them any
more susceptible to folks who use hidden city fares, because if you
don't show up for the return flight at B, they'll still cancel all
your remaining legs. Also, sometimes the boarding passes are marked
"check-in required".

Hidden city fares happen most often when the connecting point is
dominated by one airline (the carrier of your flight) and the ultimate
destination is a competitive market. 

If you happen to catch an earlier flight than your scheduled one, be
sure to reconfirm your subsequent flight segments. Any departure from
your ticketed reservation can potentially cause your itinerary to be
flagged as a hidden-city violation (e.g., "NOSH" for no-show), if the
gate agent didn't record the earlier flight properly.

If you're the dishonest type and are going to lie about actually
having taken the skipped segments, at least have the intelligence to
remove the ticket and boarding pass (keeping the stub of the boarding
pass) from the ticket packet. [I once saw a couple try this stunt in
New York, and the gate agent caught them at it. The wife had removed
her ticket and boarding pass; the husband hadn't. The husband claimed
that the gate agent at the hidden city had forgotten to remove the
ticket. The gate agent didn't let them on the flight because the
computer showed that they had missed TWO segments of their flight --
from the hidden city to their ultimate destination and back. In
addition, the gate agent had been on duty the last time they passed
through, and didn't remember seeing them board. The agent's supervisor
concurred.]

If you know in advance that you want to skip a segment of your flight
(e.g., you're flying from A to C via B, but want to get off in C,
visit with some friends, then drive up to B to visit some more friends
and return home), tell this to the travel agent when you buy the
ticket. They can make a note about it in the record so that your
return flight won't be automatically cancelled when you miss the B to
C leg.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [1-21] Buying Someone Else's Nonrefundable Ticket

Many people, when they can't use their nonrefundable ticket (or the
return leg of a round trip ticket), try to sell their tickets through
classified advertisements. This can be a source of cheap air tickets.
However, you'll be traveling under someone else's name, and the
airlines frown on this practice. If they catch you doing this, you'll
be forced to pay full fare for the return flight, and the airline will
cancel all your frequent traveler miles and all the frequent flyer
miles of the person who originally bought the ticket. They may also
terminate your membership in their frequent flyer program. (Most
airlines only check IDs on full flights or on fares that require a
special ID, such as a student ID. But more are checking IDs on
randomly selected tickets in an effort to discourage this practice.
And of course, one should never purchase such a ticket for
international travel, since they always check your travel documents
when you check in for the flight.) If the airplane should crash and
you die, the airline won't have your real name (which can affect life
insurance policies), and this is just plain unethical.  But given that
the airline pricing strategies try to game the consumer market, some
consumers feel they are entitled to game the system right back. I
neither advise nor condone using this practice as a means of obtaining
cheap air travel.

Northwest prints the following warning on the inside flap of the
ticket jacket: 

  "Photo identification is required for all passengers.  Boarding may
   be denied and ticket confiscated if passenger's identification does
   not match the name on the ticket."

----------------------------------------------------------------
;;; *EOF*


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 08-13-94                         Msg # 22763  
  To: ALL                              Conf: (2120) news.answers
From: mkant@cs.cmu.edu                 Stat: Public
Subj: FAQ: Air Traveler's Handb        Read: No
------------------------------------------------------------------------
@SUBJECT:FAQ: Air Traveler's Handbook 2/4 [Monthly posting]           
@PACKOUT:08-13-9440.13081994.0920@channel1.com                        
Message-ID: <AIRFARE_2_776761236@CS.CMU.EDU>
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air,news.answers,rec.answers
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University

Archive-name: travel/air/handbook/part2
Last-Modified: Thu Jul 21 23:55:17 1994 by Mark Kantrowitz
Version: 1.13
Size: 51483 bytes

;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Airfare FAQ, Part 2 ********************************************
;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Written by Mark Kantrowitz

This post is a summary of useful information for air travelers. The
focus is on obtaining inexpensive air fares, although other topics are
also covered. It was previously posted under the title "FAQ: How to
Get Cheap Airtickets".

Please mail comments, corrections, additions, suggestions, criticisms
and other information to mkant@cs.cmu.edu.

*** Copyright:

Copyright (c) 1989-94 by Mark Kantrowitz. All rights reserved.

This FAQ may be freely redistributed in its entirety without
modification provided that this copyright notice is not removed.  It
may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
(e.g., published for sale on CD-ROM, floppy disks, books, magazines,
or other print form) without the prior written permission of the
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This article is provided AS IS without any express or implied warranty.

*** Topics Covered:

Part 2 (Travel Agents, Connections, Airports, Baggage):

   Travel Agents:
   [2-1]  Travel Agents
   [2-2]  Unusual Travel Agents: Commission Rebaters
   [2-3]  Consolidators
   [2-4]  Couriers
   [2-5]  Travel Agencies that Specialize in Students
   [2-6]  Visit USA
   [2-7]  Free Upgrades to First Class
   [2-8]  Companion Tickets
   [2-9]  Avoiding Travel Scams

   [2-10] Missed Connections
   [2-11] Getting There Faster

   [2-12] Airports Monopolized by One Carrier
   [2-13] Hub Cities

   Baggage:
   [2-14] Lost Baggage
   [2-15] Baggage Limits
   [2-16] Pets
   [2-17] Bicycles
   [2-18] Restrictions on Electronics 
   [2-19] X-ray Machines/Metal Detectors
   [2-20] Packing Tips/Checklist

Search for [#] to get to question number # quickly.

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Subject: [2-1]  Travel Agents

   It pays to use a travel agent only if you know a *good* one. A
good travel agent will know when a small change in your schedule can
save you a lot of money. If you buy direct from the airline, you may
not find out such information, since they will only quote you the
rates for the times you ask. So if you're going to use a travel agent,
make sure that you find one who is willing (and able) to search
through the morass of fares and restrictions to find a good deal for
you. A travel agent who just punches your data into the computer and
tells you the prices is no better than the airline's 800 number. A
good travel agent can probably save you about 10-15%.
[Actually, if the airline goes bankrupt between ticket purchase and
flight time, and you bought your ticket from a travel agent, you may
be able to get a refund, especially from some of the larger agencies.
If the airlines goes bankrupt within 10 days of the purchase of the
ticket, the agency may not have paid the airline yet (they are allowed
10 days to do so), so you can ask them for a refund. Better yet, buy
your airtickets with a credit card, and the federal credit protection
act will allow you to get a refund from your credit card company.]

There are several major differences between using a travel agency and
using the airport (airline) ticket agents:

   1. A travel agent can look at all the airline fares, not just
      those of a single carrier. A good travel agent will check fares 
      on at least three carriers. Airlines can only give you their own
      best fares. Then again, you can always call up three (or more) 
      airlines yourself to discover the best fares on each.

   2. A travel agent can check for special deals with consolidators.
      Airline ticket agents can't. Airlines sell heavily discounted
      tickets only through consolidators, not direct to the passenger.

Given the frequency of fare changes these days, a good travel agent
can often find you some real bargains. A bad travel agent, on the
other hand, may miss getting you the lowest possible fare. So it is
best to find yourself a good travel agent.

If you don't care for consolidator tickets, the travel agents get the
same pricing information as is available from most of the online
reservation services and the airlines themselves. So you can do your
own legwork if you wish by calling the airlines themselves. But why do
it when a good travel agent can do it for you? After all, when you buy
a ticket direct from the airline the airline still keeps the
commission, so why not give the commission to a travel agent, who'll
do a little work to make sure you get the cheapest fare?

   Note that some travel agencies try to funnel all their business to
a specific airline, because the more tickets they sell to a single
airline, the more money they get. Airlines have incentive programs to
encourage this practice. The travel agent may also know how to look up
fares on only one airline.  This means that your travel agent may be
checking the fares on a single airline, instead of hunting around for
the best fare from several airlines. This is especially true for
travel agencies near airports that are dominated by one carrier. Your
best bet may be to call several airlines before you go to your travel
agent, doing the research on your own, or to tell the travel agent to
check fares on two or three specific airlines. (Don't tell them to
check on all airlines -- nobody is going to do that much work just for
a $20 commission.)

   Also, airlines sometimes sell bulk tickets to large travel
agencies at bargain basement prices if they think they cannot fill the
seats. So depending on the travel agency, you might be able to get a
really good deal. Travel agents sometimes get complimentary tickets
(e.g., one free ticket for every 25 sold), which they can sell as they
wish. (These are called "Promotional Tickets" and are for standby travel.)

   But then again, travel agents get a commission on air tickets
and hotels. The commission is a fixed percentage of the fare (if you
order direct from the airline, the airline pockets the difference). So
the agent can earn more money by selling you a more expensive ticket.
So be cautious when using a travel agent. Look over the agent's
shoulder and see if they're overlooking a really cheap flight.

   Since discount flights have restrictions on day of week and
flight times, make sure that you let the travel agent know that you
are flexible and will change a day either way if that will save you money.

   Airport ticket agents tend to be better informed than the
people at the toll-free reservation number, since they often have to
deal with special situations (missed connections, bumped people, etc.)
that require really knowing the reservation system's ins and outs.

   But beware. Airport ticket agents are not beyond lying or making
mistakes.  A frequent complaint of air travelers is being quoted one
price over the phone, and finding that their credit card has been
charged another. Sometimes this happens because the computer system
has trouble completing the transaction and delays it until the
following morning (whence the fare change). But other times it is due
to human error (as if computer problems aren't due to human error
either). When you get your tickets, be sure to verify that the price
charged matches the price you were quoted. If they're different, be
prepared for a fight -- airlines seem very reluctant to own up to this
kind of error. Give as much detailed information as possible, such as
the time you called, the name of the ticket agent, the price quoted,
any unusual occurrences. Get the problem fixed *before* you use the
ticket. They probably won't refund you the difference, as the price on
the ticket is almost always the correct price, but they are required
to (by law) allow you to cancel the ticket and get a full refund
without penalty. If they give you any trouble, pursue it with your
credit card company. It is worth repeating, however, that you can get
the refund only if you don't use the ticket, and initiate any
complaint promptly. [Note that this circumstance is different from
when the airline prints an incorrect price in the newspaper. Not only
is the error clearly documented, but the error occurs before the
transaction is completed, not after.]

Even though most airlines are now matching their lowest discount
fares, it still pays to have your travel agent check several airlines.
For example, USAir has a virtual monopoly out of Pittsburgh, some
sometimes they don't feel the need to reduce the fares. If you don't
mind making a connection, you can sometimes save some money by taking
another airline. 

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-2]  Unusual Travel Agents: Commission Rebaters

Travel agencies earn their money by receiving a commission on the
base fare of the ticket (i.e., before taxes). Usually the commissions
are as follows:
  US Domestic:  10%
 Canadian Domestic: 8.25%
 International:  9%
 Canada-to-US:  10% (sold in Canada)
        Rent-a-car companies: 10%
The following travel agencies will give you a small discount on your
ticket price by rebating to you a portion of their commission, or by
charging a flat fee (which is less than the usual commssion amount).

Travel Avenue is a Chicago-based travel agency that charges a fixed
flat fee for each ticket ($15 domestic, $25 international). They will
rebate to you a portion of the difference between their commission and
their fee. For instance, if you were booking a ticket from Houston to
Aspen round trip for $370, TA's cost is $336.36. TA refunds the user
7% of $370 ($25.90) and then takes their $15 from that. So, traveler
pays $354.10 for the ticket.  You must, however, work out your travel
plans in advance, and they only provide rebates on tickets costing
more than $300. They charge a $5 delivery fee for these tickets. If
several passengers are traveling on the same itinerary, the
per-passenger flat fee is reduced.  Travel Avenue also provides the
consumer with a similar rebate for car rentals and hotel bookings.
Call 1-800-333-3335 for recorded information.

For non-consolidator tickets, Price Club Travel is an excellent place
to pick up your tickets, even if you do all the research on fares with
the airline on your own.  They refund half the commission to you
(around 5% of the ticket price). A certificate good for cash or Price
Club merchandise is given to you when you pick up your ticket.  Tax is
excluded when calculating the rebate as are airport fees. This service
is only for Price Club Members, and tickets must be picked up at a
Price Club. Discover (extra 1% rebate), Visa, and Mastercard are
accepted. Their number is 800-800-8505 (Price Club members only).

It pays to be a member of the American Automobile Association (AAA).
Besides complimentary maps, the AAA travel agencies often have special
discounts beyond the usual airline tariffs, such as extra discounts on
some international flights, and discount airfares for visiting friends
and relatives on certain flights with specific airlines. AAA also
has included dollars off coupons for airlines like USAir and United in
their membership newsletter.

ISE Flights has a special deal with Citibank through June 30, 1995.
They will give you a $20 rebate on any ticket priced over $150,
provided the ticket is purchased through ISE and issued in cardholders
name. (If you are traveling with friends and family, ISE will
be pleased to issue tickets for all of you.) To get your rebate,

   1. Call a major airline and make a reservation directly. 
      Reservations made through a travel agent are not eligible.

   2. Record the flight information, the price quoted, and the
      reservation number (if available).

   3. Ask the airline to put the flight on courtesy hold.

   4. Call ISE at 1-800-255-7000, and charge the ticket to your
      Citibank card. [The tickets do not necessarily need to be
      charged to your Citibank card. They will ask for your Citibank 
      cardnumber to verify that you are a Citibank cardholder, but you
      can charge the tickets to another card, such as Discover card, 
      America Express, MC/VISA.]

The rebate and ticket will be mailed out the same day.

Costa Online Travel offers a 5% rebate on any CRUISE or TOUR booked
through their service. For more information, see
   http://mmink.cts.com/costapackage.html

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-3]  Consolidators

Ticket consolidators (wholesalers, ``bucket shops'') are often 30-40%
cheaper than buying direct from the airline. They buy blocks of unsold
seats from the airlines and resell them at a slim margin. Such tickets
are usually heavily restricted and are for a standard profile (e.g.,
no special meals, no changes, no transfers, no refunds).  It used to
be the case that you couldn't get frequent flyer miles for travel on
consolidator tickets, but that seems to be changing.  Cancellation
penalties are often much more severe than on regular tickets.  The
greater the distance traveled, the greater the chances of saving money
through a consolidator ticket. The Sunday NY Times travel section has
a list of such wholesalers, as do many other major newspapers. You can
also find some in your local yellow pages, under the same listing as
regular travel agents.

Although "consolidator" and "bucket shop" are often used
interchangeably, they refer to different kinds of wholesalers.
Consolidators buy large blocks of tickets at discounted rates direct
from the airlines. When an airline can't sell their tickets at regular
prices, they sell them to consolidators at lower prices. The
restrictions on these tickets are governed by the consolidator's
contract with the airline, and not by the rules for published fares.
Such contracts usually preclude consolidators from naming airlines in
advertisements, but do allow them to specify prices.  Usually they
sell only through retail agencies and not directly to the public. Some
consolidators sell tickets only to travel agencies.  Others sell both
wholesale and retail.  Bucket shops are retail agencies that
specialize in getting discounted prices on tickets. They are familiar
with the full range of consolidators for all the carriers (every
airline sells to many consolidators) and in other techniques of fare
construction, importing tickets, etc. Many bucket shops don't have any
direct contact with the airline, in contrast with consolidators.

International airfares are set by international agreement and
regulated by the airline cartel, IATA.   Most interantional airlines
are closely related to, if not directly owned by, their national
governments. Thus most governments have an interest in protecting the
profits of their national airline, with the result that the IATA fares
are artificially high. IATA rules prohibit discounting, and in some
countries these rules are actually enforced. Bucket shops work around
the rules by buying discounted tickets direct from the airlines or
through consolidators. These tickets are discounted with restrictions
that attempt to ensure that the airlines fill otherwise empty seats
instead of diverting full-fare passengers to cheaper tickets. Some
restrictions include limitations on the advertising of such tickets,
forbidding mention of the name of the airline, or restricting the
promotion of such tickets to a particular geographic or ethnic market.
Another method of discounting tickets is through rebating a portion of
the consolidator commission to the public.

AirHitch (212-864-2000; 2790 Broadway, Suite 100, New York, NY 10025)
is a consolidator which buys unsold seats very close to the wire.
Their customers provide a window of times (or destinations), and
AirHitch lets them know about available flights on extremely short
notice. Not for the faint of heart. A similar outfit is AirTech
(800-575-TECH) <airtech@netcom.com>. There have been reports of
complaints by consumers about both outfits.

When buying tickets from a consolidator, it is best to use a reputable
one that has been around for a while. Many are small companies and
tend to go out of business frequently. The best advice we can offer is
to purchase tickets through a travel agent who regularly deals with
consolidators. 

Some tips:

   +  Shop around. Unlike regular tickets, different consolidators may
      offer different prices for the same destination.

   +  Buy your tickets with a credit card, so you can get a refund
      from your credit card company if you never get the tickets. Many
      consolidators, however, do not accept credit cards, or add a
      surcharge for non-cash purchases (possibly phrasing the
      difference in price between credit card and non credit card
      purchases as a cash discount). 

   +  If possible, pick up the tickets in person. If you don't get the
      tickets within a day or two by mail, something is wrong.

   +  When you get the tickets, call the airline immediately to verify
      that the tickets are legitimate.

Example Consolidators:
   + Airbrokers   800-883-3273
   + Best Travel Service  800-800-4788 (713-777-4888)
   + Cheap Tickets  800-377-1000
   + Global Access   800-283-5333
   + IntraTours   800-334-8069 (713-952-0662)
   + Nippon Travel   800-662-6236
   + Overseas Tours   800-878-8718 
   + Sunline Express Holidays  800-786-5463
   + STA Travel   800-777-0112
     Specializes in student/youth travel.
   + Travac    800-872-8800
   + UniTravel, St. Louis  800-325-2222

AUSTRAVEL is a consolidator for travel to Australia. They have offices
at 360 Post Street, Suite 606, in San Francisco, phone 800-633-3404
(415-781-4329), fax 415-781-4358. They have other offices
in New York, Chicago, Houston, Sydney, and the UK.

PASSENGER'S CHOICE 1-800-666-1026 advertises business class for up to
40% off in the San Francisco paper. They aren't really a consolidator.
They get the low fares by buying excess frequent flyer miles from high
volume frequent flyers, and then redeeming the certificates for a ticket
in your name. The selling of frequent flyer miles in this manner is a
violation of airline rules (the original certificate holder can issue
a ticket in your name, but isn't supposed to accept compensation for
doing it). This is a gray area.

Other bargain travel agencies:
   + Travel Bargains   800-872-8385
   + Airfares for Less   800-AIR-FARE

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-4]  Couriers

One way of getting cheap international flights is to fly as a
freelance courier. There are a few companies which will pay you for
the right to use your baggage allowance, yielding a heavily-discounted
fare (typically a little more than half the regular discounted fare).
For them, this is much cheaper than paying cargo rates for shipping.
The "courier company" matches you with the companies, and gets some
money from you, and a percentage of the savings from the company. If
the courier company is really desperate, sometimes (rarely) you can
get them to pay for all or most of your ticket.  Non-refundable, and
usually very short notice -- 1-2 weeks. You do not deal with the
baggage, other than to hand-carry a set of paperwork.  You are allowed
a carry-on.  There may be other restrictions, such as limits to the
length of the stay.

There are risks involved, so be sure to use a reputable courier
company and get references. Horror stories include stranded
passengers, couriered luggage that contained contraband, and so on.
Also beware of fly-by-night outfits that advertise cheap fares and
then disappear with your money. If you haven't traveled by courier
before, be very careful.

Some books about flying as a courier include:

   o  The Air Courier's Handbook, $9.95
      Big City Books, PO Box 19667, Sacramento, CA 95819

   o  The Courier Air Travel Handbook, 1993, $7.95.
      Mark I. Field, Thunderbird Press, 5930-10 W. Greenway Road, 
      Suite 112B Glendale, Arizona 85306 USA

   o  A Simple Guide to Courier Travel, $15.95
      1-800-344-9375
      Guide Books, PO Box 2394, Lake Oswego, OR 97035

   o  Travel Unlimited, $25/year
      Attn: Steve Lantos, PO Box 1058, Allston, MA 02134-1058

   o  The Insiders Guide To Air Courier Bargains
      Kelly Monaghan. 1-800-356-9315 $14.95.

Newsletters:

   o  International Association of Air Travel Couriers
      $35 registration fee, gets you a free newsletter
      Run by Bill Bates.

      International Association of Air Travel Couriers
      International Features
      PO Box 1349
      Lake Worth, FL 33460

      (Street address is 8 South "J" Street, Suite 3, Lake Worth.)

Courier Agencies in New York:
   Courier Travel Service   516-763-6898,800-922-2359,718-244-0101 
 Worldwide, but mainly to Europe. No fee. Hours 09:00-17:00
   Now Voyager, Inc.   212-431-1616
 Europe. Call between 11:30-18:00. Charges $50 registration fee.
        Major cities in US, routed through NY. Payment via certified
        check, money order, or credit cards (3% processing fee).
        Tickets are on standby. FedEx's the tickets to your address.
   Halbart    718-656-8189/8279
        New York to Europe only.        or 718-995-7019
 10am-3pm only
   IBC     718-262-8058.
   East-West Express   516-561-2360
 To Singapore, Asia, and Australia.
   World Courier   718-978-9400
 9am-noon only. Requires personal interview in New York.
 Does not fly to Paris.
   Jupiter Air    718-341-2095, 718-656-6050
 New York to Hong Kong and Singapore.

Courier Agencies in Miami:
   A-1 International   305-594-1184
        To Venezuela
   Air Facilities   305-477-8300
   Line Haul Services   305-477-0651
        To Latin America
  
Courier Agencies in Chicago:
   TNT Chicago    312-453-7300
   [doesn't seem to exist anymore?]

Courier Agencies in LA:
   IBC Pacific    310-607-0125
    9am-4pm T-F
   City Link    213-410-9063
       [doesn't seem to exist anymore?]
   Jupiter Air    310-670-5123
       Flights to Hong Kong, Singapore, and South Korea.
   Crossroads International  213-643-8600
  3pm-5:30 pm
       [doesn't seem to exist anymore?]
   Midnight Express   310-673-1100
       Flies only to London.

Courier Agencies in San Francisco:
   TNT San Fransisco   415-692-9600
 Afternoons only.
   Gateway Express   415-344-7833
       111 Anza Blvd. #418 Burlingame, CA 94010

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-5]  Travel Agencies that Specialize in Students

Council Charter (run by the CIEE) 800-800-8222.

International Student Exchange Flights 602-951-1177.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-6]  Visit USA

Several airlines have a program called "Visit USA" which allows
foreign nationals or US citizens who reside abroad to purchase tickets
that have unlimited standby travel within the US during their stay.
The tickets must be purchased abroad and Canadians are ineligible.
Other airlines with this program include United Airlines, Northwest,
and Delta.  Delta's program is called "Delta Pass". 

The pass is actually a set of coupons, with each coupon being good for
a sector. You must purchase at least N coupons, where N depends on the
airline. For United, the minimum is three coupons. There may also be a
maximum number of coupons. On United the price is about $90/sector if
you purchase the minimum number of coupons, and falls to $60/sector if
you purchase 10 coupons.  There is also a two-tier pricing scheme
depending on whether the Visit USA pass is issued by the same airline
you used to travel to the US. The difference is about $15/sector.

No rerouting or refunds are allowed. You must make confirmed
reservations for the first sector.  There is a charge for changing the
date on the first sector flight. Travel must start within 30 days and
must be completed withing 120 days of entry into the US (for travel on
United; other airlines may have different policies). Open jaw travel
is permitted.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-7]  Free Upgrades to First Class

The main method of getting first class seating without paying the
exorbitant fares is to belong to a frequent flyer program like TWA's
program, where gold and silver members get unlimited free upgrades to
first class on a space available basis. Some airlines, like USAir,
sell booklets of upgrade certificates, at an average cost of $15 per
certificate. Of course, with both programs, you won't always be able
to get first class seating.

The other method is to fly on an overbooked flight where first class
is underbooked. If you have a confirmed reservation, the airline will
usually prefer to upgrade your ticket over bumping you.

Even though American gold upgrade stickers have an expiration date,
American ticket agents rarely turn someone down because they tried to
use expired upgrade stickers. The same goes for similar programs at
other airlines. (It doesn't hurt to try.)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-8]  Companion Tickets

Many airlines are now offering free or cheap companion tickets.

Northwest currently has certificates which will allow a companion to
fly at a reduced price ($199 round trip between the east and west coast,
cheaper between shorter hauls).  Travel must be completed by 1/15/94,
Saturday night stay is required, and there are a lot of holiday period
blackout dates.  Companion earns frequent flier miles.

Citibank is currently offering a special if you sign up for their
AAdvantage card, they will give a coupon valid till 12/15/94 for a
free companion ticket on American airlines in the 48 US states.

Continental offers a deal to their One pass members where for $50
you can get a package which includes 5000 miles and a $99 RT companion
ticket certificate.  There may be some blackout dates on the certificate,
but I was able to use this around Christmas time.  Companion earns
frquent flier miles.

TWA is currently offering promotions by which it is possible to fly with
them and get a free companion ticket certificate valid some months in 1994.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-9]  Avoiding Travel Scams

When planning a trip, here are some tips for avoiding travel scams.

   +  Beware of unsolicited travel opportunities.

   +  There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch. If a travel
      opportunity sounds like a "great deal", it probably isn't.
      Either they'll take your money and run, or there are hidden
      charges. For example, many so-called "free vacations" or
      "vacation giveaways" require you to stay at a specific hotel --
      at exhorbitant rates. 

   +  Beware of extremely low-priced offers, unsolicited offers
      involving Florida or Hawaii, and opportunities that try to pressure
      you into buying on the spot.

   +  Ask detailed questions (e.g., what is covered by the price and
      what isn't, whether there are any additional charges, the names
      of the hotels, airlines, airports, and restaurants, exact dates
      and times, cancellation policies, and refund policies), and get
      it all in writing before you buy anything.

   +  Never give personal information, including credit card numbers,
      social security numbers, bank account numbers, or similar
      information to an unsolicited telephone salesperson. If you
      must, ask for a telephone number and call them back the next day,
      after you've had time to check them out. Call the Better
      Business Bureau and use the telephone number to verify if
      they're a legitimate business, and if so, whether there have
      been any complaints. You can also check out the company with the
      state attorney general's office and the local consumer
      protection agency. 

   +  Pay for purchases with a credit card, never with a check or
      money order. When you pay for purchases with a credit card,
      you're protected by the Fair Credit Billing Act against
      fraudulent charges. 

   +  If you've encountered a problem, or are suspicious of an offer,
      call the National Fraud Information Center, a hotline operated
      by the National Consumers League. The number is 800-876-7060 and
      can be reached from 9 to 5 EDT during the week.

A good booklet to read is "Telemarketing Travel Fraud", a free
publication of the Federal Trade Commission. Call 202-326-2222 for a
copy, or write to Federal Trade Commission, Public Reference Branch,
Room 130, Sixth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20580.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-10] Missed Connections

If you ever miss a connection because your plane was late and the
lines at the service desk are very long (e.g., everybody else on that
flight needs rebooking), call the airline's 800 number. Sometimes
they'll let you rebook because of a missed connection over the phone.
You may still have to pick up the flight coupon at the service desk
(though sometimes you'll be able to get it at the gate), but at least
you'll make the next flight. If you wait on the line, you may not make
the next flight if everybody in front of you is also waiting for the
next flight, or the next flight leaves in a few minutes.

Depending on the airline and the airport, you may be able to be
rebooked on a flight by going directly to the gate. Some airlines will
force you to go to the service desk. (For example, TWA in JFK requires
that all changes go through the service desk.)

If the flight you want to be rebooked on is "full", it may pay to
ask the agents whether upgrading to first class will make a
difference. It'll cost you, but it may save you from being stuck in
the airport for a few hours.

When buying a ticket with a connection, allow enough time to get from
one gate to the next at the connecting airport. The airline computers
have an estimate of the minimum time required to make a connection,
but this isn't always accurate, especially if the gates are at
opposite ends of the airport, or you're seated at the tail of the
plane. With the new on-time rules, airlines are reluctant to hold
flights for passengers coming from connecting flights that are late.
If you're carrying your own baggage, have kids, walk slowly, or want
to take a pit stop at the bathroom, allow yourself extra time.  Ask
your travel agent what other flights are available that leave the
connecting city a little later. 

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-11] Getting There Faster

On the flip side of the coin, airline reservation systems use a
minimum connection time of 45 minutes. They won't let you make a
reservation for a shorter connection time. You can get around this by
buying two separate pairs of round-trip tickets to/from the
connection, or by booking different legs on different airlines, but if
you happen to miss the connection, the airline is under no obligation
to rebook you on a later flight.

However, if you travel light enough that you can carry on all your
luggage, and you know the connecting airport, trimming the connection
time can get you to your destination faster. If you get to the
connecting airport on time or early, you might try going to the gate
of the earlier flight to your destination, and ask to be put on. If
the flight isn't full, they'll probably let you board.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-12] Airports Monopolized by One Carrier

If you live in a hub city, where the airport is monopolized by a
single carrier, you can usually get nonstop service to most
destinations. Unfortunately, you'll probably also be paying
exhorbitant prices for that service. Airlines only provide good prices
for competitive markets -- those serviced by multiple carriers. If
they are the main carrier in a given market, they keep the prices
high, and will even (arrogantly) refuse to match prices with other
carriers. 

The other national carriers might have one or two gates at this
airport. If so, you may find them offering cheaper fares than the
monopoly carrier. There is, however, one drawback to this. Since your
airport isn't one of their hubs, the flights they offer will almost
always involve first flying you to their closest hub, and getting a
connection there -- even if their hub is in the opposite direction
from your destination. On the other hand, if their hub is your
ultimate destination, then you're in luck. 

There is another workaround to dealing with a hub carrier. If there's
another major airport within an hour or two drive from your home, you
could fly out from there. (The same thing is true of using frequent
flyer certificates for free travel. If there's no seats available on
the days you're interested in from your local airport, try another
airport nearby. Also, sometimes regular air fares may be cheaper out
of an airport in a different city. If driving 100 miles saves you
$300, isn't it worth the bother?)

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-13] Hub Cities

   Try to avoid hub cities. For example, since USAir's hub is
Pittsburgh, they have a virtual monopoly on flights to PGH, so if
you're so unlucky as to be flying to Pittsburgh, the rates are not cheap.
Occasionally you may be able to take a flight which makes a stop or
connection at Pittsburgh, and walk off the plane in Pittsburgh (i.e.,
a ticket from Boston to Cleveland on a plane which makes a stop in
Pittsburgh might be cheaper than a ticket from Boston to Pittsburgh on
the same plane). This only works when you can carry on all of your
baggage. (Or if your connecting flight is more than two hours after
your flight arrives or on a different plane, you can usually arrange
to claim your baggage at the hub and recheck it yourself. 8*) Several
airlines are currently being investigated by the justice department
for anti-trust violations based on their dominating the airports at
their hubs.

   Here's a list of airline hub cities. I've asterisked those
that I'm sure are monopolized by that airline. # indicates the main
hub of the airline.
   Alaska Airlines (AS): Anchorage (ANC)#, SEA
   America West (HP): Phoenix (PHX)#, Las Vega$ (LAS), Columbus OH
   American Airlines (AA): Dallas/Ft. Worth (DFW)#, Raleigh/Durham (RDU)*, 
      SJC*, SJU, ORD, BNA,
   Continental Airlines (CO): Newark (EWR)#, Cleveland (CLE)*, IAH, DEN, MSY
   Delta Airlines (DL): Atlanta (ATL)*#, Salt Lake City (SLC)*, DFW, CVG, LAX,
      ORL, JFK and FRA (Frankfurt, FRG).
   Midwest Express (YX): MKE
   Northwest Airlines (NW): Milwaukee (MKE)*, DTW#, Memphis (MEM)#,
      BOS, NRT, Tokyo.  
   Southwest Airlines (WN): Chicago (MDW), St. Louis (STL), Dallas Love (DAL),
      Houston Hobby (HOU), PHX, ABQ
   TWA (TW): St. Louis (STL)*#, New York (JFK), Paris (ORY or CDG)
   USAir (US): Pittsburgh (PIT)*#, Philadelphia (PHL), Charlotte (CLT)*, 
      Baltimore (BWI)*, LAX, SFO, SYR, IND
   United Airlines (UA): Chicago#, DEN, Washington Dulles (IAD), SEA, SFO, 
      Raleigh, Tokyo, LHR (London Heathrow)


Airport Abbreviations and Hubs:

ABQ Albuquerque, NM           WN
ANC Anchorage, AK             AS
ATL Atlanta, GA               DL
BNA Nashville, TN             AA
BOS Boston, MA                NW
BWI Baltimore, MD             US
CLE Cleveland, OH             CO
CLT Charlotte, NC             US
CVG Cincinatti, OH            DL
DAL Dallas (Love Field), TX   WN
DEN Denver, CO                CO UA
DFW Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX      AA DL
DTW Detroit, MI               NW
EWR Newark, NJ                CO
HOU Houston (Hobby), TX       WN
IAD Washington (Dulles), DC   UA
IAH Houston (Intercontinental), TX   CO
IND Indianapolis, IN          US
JFK New York (Kennedy), NY    PA TW
LAS Las Vega$                 HP
LAX Los Angeles               DL US
MEM Memphis, TN               NW
MIA Miami, FL                 PA
MKE Milwaukee, WI             NW YX
MSP Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN  NW
MSY New Orleans, LA           CO
ORD Chicago, IL               AA UA
MCO Orlando, FL               DL
PHL Philadelphia, PA          US
PHX Phoenix, AZ               HP WN
PIT Pittsburgh, PA            US
RDU Raleigh/Durham, NC        AA
SEA Seattle, WA               AS UA
SFO San Francisco, CA         UA US
SJC San Jose, CA              AA
SJU San Juan, PR              AA
SLC Salt Lake City, UT        DL
STL St. Louis, MO             TW
SYR Syracuse, NY              US

AA   American Airlines
AS   Alaska Airlines
CO   Continental Airlines
DL   Delta Airlines
HP   America West Airlines
PA   Pan American World Airways
TW   Trans World Airlines
UA   United Airlines
US   U S Air
WN   Southwest Airlines
YX   Midwest Express

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-14] Lost Baggage

The domestic baggage liability limit is a minimum of $1250.00 per
passenger.  Some airlines may provide greater limits for
checked/unchecked baggage.  For international flights, the baggage
liability limit is approximately $9.07 per pound ($20 per kilogram)
for checked baggage and $400 per passenger for unchecked baggage. A
minimum waiting period of one week is required before baggage can be
declared lost.

Airlines will not reimburse for currency, photographic or electronic
equipment (e.g., cameras, stereos, VCRs, camcorders, CD players,
telephones, etc.), rare and expensive jewelry or artistic works, or
medication, unless prior arrangements were made (e.g., excess
valuation insurance was purchased). Some credit cards will cover these
items if the tickets were purchased with the card.

Most lost baggage doesn't disappear to the same black hole that eats
socks from your laundry, but eventually makes its way to regional
warehouses owned by the airlines. If the airline can't identify the
owner, they sell it at auction, just like the post office's lost
letter department does. There are even stores that specialize in
buying the lost baggage, sorting the contents, and selling the
merchandise and clothing that's in good condition.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-15] Baggage Limits

Checked baggage weight/size/number limits vary depending on the airline,
the class of fare, and the country of origin. Typically one is limited
to 2 pieces of checked baggage (excluding luggage carriers), each of
which has a total length + width + height less than 60" (or 72") and
weighs less than 70 pounds (32 kg).

Unchecked baggage is usually limited to 2 bags, which must fit under
the seat in front of you or in the overhead compartment. Purses,
cameras, coats, and similar items are usually excluded from the limit.
Garment bags are also often excluded, especially for first class
customers. Sometimes the limit will be reduced to 1 bag, especially on
very full flights.

Oversize articles (e.g., skis, bicycles, moose heads) must be checked.

If you do have excess baggage, it is cheaper to pay the excess baggage
charges than to ship it by air freight. (This is why courier travel
exists -- it is often cheaper for a company to pay for an airline
ticket than it is for them to pay freight charges.) Rates airlines
charge for excess baggage vary considerably, so it pays to call around
before purchasing a ticket.

Baggage limit rules are enforced very unevenly, particularly on
flights which aren't very full.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-16] Pets

   If you are travelling with a dog or cat, you must say so when you
make your reservation. All airlines will allow at most one dog in the
presurized portion of the cabin (to prevent barking fights). The dog
must be in a travel cage which fits under the seat in front of you and
sedated. (If the dog is small, try to get a cage which fits under the
seat, so you can keep watch on the pet. Otherwise, the dog will travel
in the pet area of the baggage section, and you won't see the dog
until the flight is over. The pet area is pressurized but may not be
heated/cooled. Get nonstop flights since the pet area can get pretty
hot while on the ground.) Only one cat per carrier except for kittens.
Some airlines will charge you extra (~$50) for a small dog or cat.

   America West and Southwest do not take pets. (Southwest will
take seeing-eye dogs.) State law in all 50 states requires common
carriers (e.g., airlines) to allow guide dogs to accompany their
masters. They are prohibited from charging extra because of the
presence of a seeing-eye and hearing-ear dog. Canadian provinces have
similar laws. 

   AA, UA and US all take dogs. US charges $30. AA and UA charge $50.
(Small dogs.) United charges $50 per carrier for cats in the pet area,
$30 for cats as underseat baggage.

   All carriers require a recent (10 days old or less) veterinary
certificate of health, but rarely look at it.
   All airlines embargo pets if the outside temperature is in the
90's (or perhaps even 80's). AA won't carry a pet if the temperature
is less than 45F (enforcement of this rule is uneven). UA says they
won't handle pets when it is -10F. US says they always handle pets
except on certain commuter flights.

   US allows you to bring your pet out to the gate and have it
boarded just before you get on the plane. AA sometimes will, but
usually won't, allow this.
   Many airlines require that the dog be given a tranquilizer supplied
by your vet.


The following is what the airlines charge (1-way) for a pet which fits
under the seat in front of you, as of August 1, 1992. 
   $30   Alaska
   $45   Delta, Northwest, USAir
   $50   American, America West, Continental, TWA, United

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-17] Bicycles

Most airlines charge about $45 one way to ship a bike. If you belong
to the League of American Bicyclists ($25 annual membership fee for
individuals, $30 for families, call 1-800-288-BIKE (1-800-288-2453)
for info), you can get free bike passes on America West, Northwest,
TWA, and USAir if you book your tickets through the Sports National
Reservation Center, the LAB's travel agency. [LAB formerly known as
League of American Wheelmen.]

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-18] Restrictions on Electronics 

The navigation equipment on most airplanes is unshielded, and hence
subject to interference from electronic devices such as radios or
personal computers. The latest FAA advisory leaves it up to the
airlines to set their own rules, but prohibits the use of cellular
phones during taxi before takeoff and during takeoff itself. Many
prohibit the use of certain types of equipment below 10,000 feet.

The FAA is considering setting a standard, with 3 classes of
equipment:
   1. No restriction. This will include hearing aids, digital watches,
      and implanted devices, such as pacemakers.
   2. Prohibited during takeoff and landing. This will include
      electronic games, audio/video recorders, and calculators/computers
      (the kind without printers and disk drives).
   3. Prohibited at all times. This will include cellular phones,
      remote-control devices, FM radio receivers, electric shavers, TV
      receivers, and radio transmitters.
The FAA is still conducting studies, and will need to classify other
equipment, such as CD players. The standard will also allow airlines
to choose to add additional restrictions on the use of electronic
equipment. 

Right now, each airline sets its own rules, and the pilots may further
restrict the rules. Here are some sample rules:
   USAIR:
      - Prohibited at all times: portable radios, televisions,
        telephones, and CD players.
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing: tape recorders, electric
        shavers, tape players (headsets must be removed during
        takeoff/landing), hand electronic games, hand calculators, and
        portable computers.
      - Everything else: Ask a flight attendant.
   United:
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing (10,000 feet): All
        electronic devices.
   American:
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing (10,000 feet): All
        electronic devices, especially laptops and CD players.
   Northwest:
      - Prohibited at all times: radio receivers and transmitters,
        cellular phones.
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing (10,000 feet): All
        electronic devices.
      - Permitted during flight: computers, electronic games, CD players,
        tape players.
   Delta:
      - Prohibited at all times: cellular phones
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing (10,000 feet): CD players,
        portable computers, radios
   Canadian Airlines:
      - Prohibited during takeoff/landing (10,000 feet): CD players,
        and laptops.

Devices like TVs, Radios, CD Players, and Laptops, among others, have
oscillators inside them that can send out RF energy. Shielding
requirements for consumer use are not necessarily stringent enough for
use on an airplane. Airplanes have numerous communication and
navigation radios in the cockpit. For example, many of the instruments
in the cockpit compute the position of the airplane by triangulating
ground and sattelite-based radio signals.  If the RF emissions from
your radio happen to have RF energy on the frequency, it can interfere
with the operation of the instruments in cockpit. Since the autopilot
is slaved to these signals, spurious RF emissions can cause incorrect
course changes. This is especially critical during takeoff and
landing, because the room for error is reduced (and errors can have
more serious consequences). In addition, RF energy is suspected of
interfering with data feeds between parts of the aircraft's flight
control system. In modern fly-by-wire aircraft, this can cause
unwanted control movements. RF energy also has the potential of
interfering with weather radar, airborne direction finder equipment,
terminal collision-avoidance systems, and microwave landing systems.
None of this has been verified by testing, but many airlines
rightfully take a better safe than sorry attitude.

Below 10,000 feet is known as the "sterile cockpit" portion of the
flight. This means that the cabin crew may not disturb the cockpit
crew except in an emergency.

Hazardous materials, such as paints, explosives, lighter fluid, and
fireworks, are not permitted aboard aircraft. You may not check these
in your baggage nor may you include them in a carry-on. You may also
not include anything pressurized (e.g., spray cans, oxygen bottles,
etc.) in your luggage, as the baggage area experiences pressure
changes during the flight.

The use of cellular phones is forbidden on all flights at all times by
the FCC (not by the FAA; FAA only prohibits their use during takeoff
and landing).  The high altitude of the plane extends the effective
range of the phone, interfering with cellular communications on the
ground within a 100 mile radius of the plane.

The charge for headphones to listen to the movie on long flights isn't
for headphone rental per se, but royalties to the movie company.
(Movie royalty contracts often charge both a fixed fee and a
percentage based on the number of viewers.) 

Knives and sharp implements that have a blade longer than three inches
will usually not be allowed through airport security and must be
checked through as baggage. Pocket knives (e.g., Swiss Army knives)
are usually acceptable. 

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-19] X-ray Machines/Metal Detectors

There is a lot of misinformation about what can and can't be safely
passed through the airport x-ray machines and the metal detectors. 

ASA 400 film, when passed through the airport x-ray machines, gets
fogged. I know this from personal experience, having ruined a roll of
film by accidentally sending my camera bag through the machine. Higher
film speeds will be more susceptible to fogging; ASA 100 film is
probably much more resistant to momentary exposure. Nevertheless, film
should not be sent through the airport x-ray machines. Packing the film
in a lead-lined bag should protect it. 

Supposedly European x-ray machines are kinder and gentler on film, but
I don't believe it. The next time I travel to Europe, I'll run a roll
through and see.

Can airport X-ray machines damage floppy disks, magnetic tapes, and
portable computers? Probably not. I would be more worried about the
metal detector than the X-ray machine. If the magnetic field is set
strong enough, walking through with a floppy diskette, computer tape,
cassette tape, or video tape can erase the tape. Although there have
been a few unsubstantiated reports of portable computers being damaged
by X-ray machines, it is unclear whether the X-ray machines were
responsible. Given the flimsy construction of early notebooks, and the
roughness inherent in any kind of transportation, whether by plane,
car, or train, it's likely that they wouldn't have survived the trip
even if they hadn't been passed through the X-ray machine. So what do
we know?

   +  A Mayo Clinic study says X-ray machines don't damage floppy disks. 

   +  The Apple Powerbook manual specificly states that the machine
      should not be passed through airport X-ray machines. The
      Powerbook Companion, on the other hand, states that X-rays don't
      harm the powerbook.

Given that most airports are willing to hand-check computer equipment
and magnetic media, it's probably best to keep them clear of *both*
the metal detector and X-ray machine, just in case.

Do not rest your film or notebook on top of the x-ray machine -- they
aren't as well shielded as they could, especially on top. 

Unless you rub your wallet along the coils of the metal detector, and
the field strength is set very high, walking through is unlikely to
wipe the magnetic strip on your credit cards.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [2-20] Packing Tips/Checklist

Checklist of things to bring with you:

  [ ]  Fanny Pack or Money Belt
  [ ]  Small Screwdrivers
  [ ]  Camera, Batteries, Film (especially for overseas travel)
  [ ]  Sewing Kits, Safety Pins
  [ ]  Bandages, Sun Block, Insect Repellent, Cough Drops, Decongestants
  [ ]  Toilet Paper (especially if traveling in Europe)
  [ ]  Plastic Baggies (Ziploc), Duct Tape
  [ ]  Washcloths
  [ ]  Umbrellas
  [ ]  Extra small change. A roll of dimes in the US; a pocketful of coins
       overseas. (Public restrooms in Europe are often coin-operated.)
  [ ]  Small tape recorder or pad of paper, for notes/journal.
  [ ]  For wet climates, don't take cotton clothes, which get soggy
       and don't insulate as well when wet.

----------------------------------------------------------------
;;; *EOF*


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 08-13-94                         Msg # 22766  
  To: ALL                              Conf: (2120) news.answers
From: mkant@cs.cmu.edu                 Stat: Public
Subj: FAQ: Air Traveler's Handb        Read: No
------------------------------------------------------------------------
@SUBJECT:FAQ: Air Traveler's Handbook 3/4 [Monthly posting]           
@PACKOUT:08-13-9440.13081994.0920@channel1.com                        
Message-ID: <AIRFARE_3_776761236@CS.CMU.EDU>
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air,news.answers,rec.answers
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University

Archive-name: travel/air/handbook/part3
Last-Modified: Thu Jul 21 23:55:22 1994 by Mark Kantrowitz
Version: 1.13
Size: 52651 bytes

;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Airfare FAQ, Part 3 ********************************************
;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Written by Mark Kantrowitz

This post is a summary of useful information for air travelers. The
focus is on obtaining inexpensive air fares, although other topics are
also covered. It was previously posted under the title "FAQ: How to
Get Cheap Airtickets".

Please mail comments, corrections, additions, suggestions, criticisms
and other information to mkant@cs.cmu.edu.

*** Copyright:

Copyright (c) 1989-94 by Mark Kantrowitz. All rights reserved.

This FAQ may be freely redistributed in its entirety without
modification provided that this copyright notice is not removed.  It
may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
(e.g., published for sale on CD-ROM, floppy disks, books, magazines,
or other print form) without the prior written permission of the
copyright holder.  Permission is expressly granted for this document
to be made available for file transfer from installations offering
unrestricted anonymous file transfer on the Internet.

This article is provided AS IS without any express or implied warranty.

*** Topics Covered:

Part 3 (Safety & Comfort, Frequent Flyers):

   Travel Safety, Comfort, and Convenience:
   [3-1]  Travel Advisories/Health Information
   [3-2]  Travel Safety
   [3-3]  Air Quality
   [3-4]  Smoke-Free Flights
   [3-5]  Special Meals
   [3-6]  Jetlag
   [3-7]  Pregnant Passengers
   [3-8]  Tips for Families Flying with Children
   [3-9]  Tips for Business Travelers
   [3-10] Exchanging Currency

   Frequent Flyers:
   [3-11] Frequent Flyer Programs
   [3-12] Premier FF Membership
   [3-13] Hotel Frequent Flyer Plans
   [3-14] Credit Card Voucher Offers
   [3-15] Telephone Companies
   [3-16] Discount Coupon Offers 

Search for [#] to get to question number # quickly.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-1]  Travel Advisories/Health Information

Travel advisories are issued by the US State Department, and include
Travel Warnings and Consular Information Sheets for every country.
These contain basic information every US citizen should know before
traveling to a foreign country.

Travel Warnings contain advisories about recent dangerous
circumstances affecting travelers to particular countries.

Consular information sheets list the location of the US embassy or
consulate. They also include unusual immigration practices, health
conditions, minor political disturbances, unusual currency and entry
regulations, crime and security information, and drug penalties.

For more information or personal help, call 
   Citizens Emergency Center:  202-647-5225
   Citizens Consular Services: 202-647-3444
   Passport Services:          202-647-0518
   Visa Services:              202-663-1225
   US State Department:        202-647-4000/5225
They can help with citizenship matters, property and legal problems,
questions of how to pay taxes and vote, and provide advice on similar
issues while you are abroad. The State Department desk officers for
particular countries will sometimes be more candid than the published
travel warnings. 

Advisories and related files may also be obtained by anonymous ftp
from 
   ftp.stolaf.edu:pub/travel-advisories/advisories
or retrieved by ftpbymail@stolaf.edu. You can also get updates by mail
by joining the travel-advisories list. To subscribe, send an email
message to travel-advisories-request@stolaf.edu with
   subscribe
in the message body. [This service is provided by Craig D. Rice
<cdr@stolaf.edu>, fax 507-646-3549.]

You can also call the US Department of Transportation's Free Travel
Advisory number at 800-221-0673.

For international health information (vaccines, etc.), call the 
Center for Disease Control at 404-332-4559.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-2]  Travel Safety

Travel by commercial airplane is among the safest ways to travel. But
there are still some risks. To improve your chances of surviving in
the event of a crash:

  -  Count the number of seats from you to the nearest exits, both in
     front of you and behind you. This will let you find the exits
     even if you've been blinded or the smoke is so thick you can't
     see the way out.

  -  Sit near the wings, as the airplane is reinforced there to
     support the wings.

  -  Wear natural-fiber clothes. Synthetics can melt or ignite,
     producing smoke and toxic fumes and causing burns.

  -  Wear comfortable shoes or sneakers, without high heals. High
     heals can snag on the escape slide.

  -  Bring your own infant safety seat. Use one which has been
     approved for use in motor vehicles AND aircraft. Don't use one
     which was made before February 26, 1985.

  -  In the event of a crash, do not carry any bags or other items
     with you. They can cause you to tumble on the slide, leading to
     broken bones or more serious injuries.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-3]  Air Quality

Newer airplanes recirculate part of the cabin air (up to 50%) to save
fuel, in contrast with older planes, which use all fresh air
ventilation. There have been reports of passengers and (more
frequently) flight attendants complaining about headaches caused by
"stale air".

There have been two recent studies of cabin air quality that measured
carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. Although CO2 is nontoxic, high CO2 levels
are a sign of insufficient fresh air. The normal CO2 level in outdoor
air is 300 parts per million (0.03%). The American Society of Heating,
Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers has set a "comfort
threshold" of 1,000 ppm, above which a building is considered to
suffer from stale air.

   1. Consumer Reports tested 158 flights on 20 airlines covering 44
      different kinds of planes (July 1994). They found that 25% of 
      flights had stale air at some point in the flight, with 13% 
      maintaining inadequate fresh air levels throughout the flight. 
      Boeing 757 planes were among the worst -- as high as 5 times
      higher than normal outdoor air -- while newer Boeing 747-400
      planes had the freshest air. All planes use HEPA (High Efficiency
      Particle Air) filters to remove dust, bacteria, and viruses,
      but the Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 777 planes use higher
      efficiency HEPA filters. See "Breathing on a jet plane",
      Consumer Reports, August 1994, pages 501-506, for details.

   2. Consolidated Safety Services of Virginia conducted a spot check
      of cabin air quality on 35 flights without notifying the
      airlines or crew (May 1994). Tests were conducted on Boeing 757
      and 727 and McDonnell Douglas DC-9 and MD-80 aircraft. This
      study found an average CO2 level of 1162 ppm. Note that this
      study was sponsored by the Air Transport Association (ATA), 
      which represents the airline industry.

Nevertheless, the most likely cause of the often-reported symptoms
is dry air, not a lack of fresh air (though stale air can contribute
to the problem). Cabin air on both newer and older planes has very
low humidity levels (15-20% relative humidity), due to very dry air
being brought in from outside at high altitude. 

So if you suffer from soar throats, dry eyes, headaches, allergies,
itchy nose, or general fatigue when you fly, it might be due to dry
air. To alleviate these symptoms, try the following:

   +  If you wear contact lenses, take them out for the flight,
      especially if it is longer than an hour or two in duration.

   +  Drink lots of liquids, but avoid alcohol and caffeine, which
      tend to dehydrate you.

   +  Don't take a decongestant before the flight, since this dries
      out your nose.

   +  If the air smells bad or feels stuffy -- a sign of stale air --
      complain to the flight attendant. On some planes pilots can
      control the mix of fresh and recycled air. (The pilots aren't
      affected by the stale air problem, because the cockpit has a
      separate ventillation system, as mandated by FAA regulations.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-4]  Smoke-Free Flights

The December 1992 EPA report on the health effects of environmental
tobacco smoke (so-called "second-hand smoke"), underscoring the
independent assessments in 1986 by the US Surgeon General and the
National Research Council, concluded that environmental tobacco smoke
is a carcinogen with significant health risks for non-smokers. The
lung cancer risks to non-smokers from environmental tobacco smoke are
ten times greater than the cancer risks which would normally elicit a
reaction from the EPA. It is therefore unthinkable that any airline
would continue to condone smoking on any of its flights, and any
airline that permits smoking is opening itself up to future lawsuits
from non-smoking passengers and crew.

Most domestic flights in the US are smoke-free, due to FAA regulations
that restrict smoking on short flights (under 6 hours), including
virtually all flights in the continental US. No US carrier operates
completely smoke-free trans-oceanic service, with the exception of
"experiments" (e.g., United on some SFO-SYD and JFK-LHR flights). As
more passengers complain about smoking to the airlines, more flights
will become smoke-free, especially new flights. For example, when
United announced that international flights to London (from New York)
and the South Pacific (LA-Auckland) will be smoke-free, they got such
favorable response that they're now testing smoke-free service on
some, but not all, of the flights between London and San Francisco,
Los Angeles, and Washington (Dulles).

Note that code-share flights operated by another airline may permit
smoking even when they carry a flight number of a smoke-free airline.
Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Canadian Airlines, Cathay Pacific, and China
Airlines all participate in code-shares with smoking carriers on some
routes.

The smoke status of other international carriers is as follows:

Air Canada:   Flights between Canada and the USA and Europe. 

Air New Zealand:  All flights to the USA. Smoking is permitted
     on pool flights operated by Qantas, of which
   there are many. 

British Airways:      Riding the fence; no firm policies as yet.
                        There is a completely non-smoking SFO-LHR nonstop.

Canadian Airlines It'l: All flights to Euope, TPE, HKG, and BKK, and
    pool flights YVR-HNL-AKL operated by either
   Canadian Airlines  International or Air New
   Zealand. Smoking is permitted on the YVR-FRA 
   flight, and pressure from Japan forced smoking
   on flights to Japan (TYO and NGO). (The US
   seems to export lawyers and tobacco to Japan. :-) 

Cathay Pacific:  Daily nonstop LAX-HKG is smoke-free as is all
   flights within Asia, and to Australia and New
   Zealand. New non-smoking flights between FRA
   and HKG. Smoking is allowed on flights to
   Europe, the Mideast, and Africa.
                        Cathay Pacific has announced its intention to
                        become a totally smoke-free airline, on all
                        its routes worldwide, by the end of 1995. 

China Airlines:  SFO-TPE and all flights within Asia. Three weekly
   smoke-free nonstop flights LAX-TPE; smoking is
   permited on the daily afternoon departure from
   LAX to TPE, as well as all flights to HNL,
   NYC, and ANC. They also permit smoking on
   flights to Europe and Africa.

Qantas:        Riding the fence; no firm policies as yet.

Singapore Airlines: All SQ flights from SFO and LAX (SFO-HKG-SIN,
                        LAX-TPE-SIN, and LAX-NRT-SIN) are smoke-free 
   since 1-JUL-94.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-5]  Special Meals

Most of the major airlines will provide alternate meals on
meal-flights upon request, if the request is made 24 hours in advance.
Special meals include: Kosher, Muslim, Hindu, vegetarian, children,
low-fat, low-salt, low-cholesterol, diabetic, low-glutin, and seafood.
Simply ask for the meal when you make your reservation; there is no
extra charge. 

Things to watch out for:

   o  The Hindu meal is just a non-beef meal. If you are interested in
      Indian vegetarian meals, make sure you say "Hindu Vegetarian meal" 
      when ordering.   

   o  Low-cholesterol is not the same as low-fat. The low-cholesterol
      meal will still include some fat. Sometimes the vegetarian meal
      has less fat than the low-fat meal. 

   o  Your definition of low-fat is probably not the same as the
      airlines. For example, you might get chicken and margarine
      instead of beef and butter. Chicken is lower in fat than beef,
      but...

   o  Vegetarian means different things to different people. Be sure
      to say whether you mean vegan or ovo-lacto, and be prepared to
      explain the difference to the travel agent. Some caterers think
      that a vegetarian meal means a meat meal with the meat removed.
      So be prepared for disappointments. When traveling overseas, the
      words carry yet a third interpretation, with vegetarian meaning
      vegetables, and nothing else. 

The Kosher meals are glatt and double-sealed. Wilton Caterers is the
largest supplier of these meals, although there are a number of
smaller companies as well. 

If you will be having a special meal, be sure to let the flight
attendant know as you enter the plane. Airlines sometime forget to
load the meal (especially kosher), and if you let the flight attendant
know, they can sometimes catch this. (And feel very guilty if they don't.)

If the airline forgets to load your special meal, ask for a meal
voucher. Even if you can't eat in the airport restaurants, you can buy
nuts, candy or fruit at the gift shops and the airline will reimburse
you within reason (e.g., $3-$5). 

When in doubt, bring your own food. Airplane food tends to be bland
for travelers who don't like spices, so your own food will almost
always taste better anyway.

Southwest is a "no frills" airline, so don't even bother. The most
you'll get from them is peanuts. But what do you want for some of the
cheapest fares in the industry?

The trend these days is for airlines to not serve meals on short
flights to save money. Continental Airlines doesn't serve meals on
domestic flights of 2.5 hours or less. Southwest Airlines has never
served meals on its flights. Most airlines that discontinue meal
service on short flights, however, continue to serve beverages and
light snacks (roasted peanuts, almonds, and pretzels, depending on the
airline). Even though the meal itself only costs a few dollars, when
you add in the cost of galley space, storage, preparation, cleanup,
and staffing, it can be as high as $20 a flight. Other airlines, like
Midway and Continental, offer ``No-Peanuts Fares'' on certain flights.
These are usually no-frills, short-haul flights. Some peanuts fares
still serve complimentary beverages.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-6]  Jetlag

To reset your clock, there are several things you can do:
   o  Stay up 24+ hours and go to sleep at the normal time
      for your destination.
   o  Do not take a nap at your destination until it is the normal
      time to go to sleep.
   o  When you wake up in the morning, go for a half hour
      walk in the bright morning sunlight.
   o  Do not eat right before you go to sleep. Eat a light dinner.
   o  Eat your meals according to the destination time zone.
   o  Do not drink any alcoholic or caffeine-based beverages
      during your flight. Drinking other liquids is OK -- some people
      recommend drinking a lot of water.
 
Things that affect the sleep-wake cycle:
   o  Sunlight. Properly timed bright light is very helpful. Turn off
      the lights in your bedroom at bedtime in your destination time zone,
      and leave the windowshades down in the morning.
   o  Time of Meals
   o  Amount of Sleep
   o  It is easier to shift forward (e.g., waking up at noon home time
      instead of 7am) than it is to shift backward (e.g., waking up at
      to sleep at 2am).
   o  Carbohydrates make you sleepy. Protein will keep you awake. Eat
      heavy carbohydrate meals for two days prior to the trip and a
      heavy protein one on the day of departure.

Some people recommend taking melatonin at dusk or bedtime (for your
destination) a day or two before departure, and continue for a day or
two after you arrive. Melatonin is produced by the pineal gland at the
base of the brain during the night, and can be used to shift the
circadian rhythm ("body clock").  Melatonin production is highest in
the dark and is suppressed by exposure to sunlight. 

Or you could give in, and just not plan to do anything really
important during your first day in the new time schedule. If you can
arrange it, just don't switch over to the new time zone, if you're
only going to be there for a few days.

The Argonee National Laboratory anit-jet-lag diet is available as the
file ftp.cs.cmu.edu:/user/mkant/Travel/jetlag.txt 

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-7]  Pregnant Passengers

If you're pregnant, check with your doctor before traveling by air,
especially during the last trimester. There is a small but real risk
that the flight could cause you to go into labor and induce a
premature birth. Definitely do not fly if the baby has turned.

Many airlines won't let a visibly pregnant woman travel without a note
from her doctor certifying that it's ok for her to travel and that
she's not likely to give birth at 30,000 feet. Airlines may still
refuse transportation to you, even with a doctor's certificate,
especially if you're in the 8th month. The reasons for refusal vary,
but often include the passenger's safety and airline liability. (If
you give birth in the air, the airline will have to divert to the
closest airport with a nearby hospital, even if there are no
complications.)

If you do fly, keep your lap belt low around the hips. Also, ask the
gate agent if there's an empty seat available in first class. You'll
be more comfortable in the wider seats, and if you do happen to give
birth, they can close the curtain to give you a little privacy.

Flying can also be a miserable experience for someone who is pregnant.
Flying differs from other modes of transportation in the sudden
acceleration and deceleration, frequent air pressure changes, and
significant amounts of vibration. (Though pregnant women should be
careful during any traveling, no matter what the means of
transportation.)

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-8]  Tips for Families Flying with Children

If you're flying with children, here are some tips for making air
travel a more enjoyable experience -- for you, for your child, and for
your fellow passengers.

When making reservations:

   +  Ask for window seats for your children. Children love to watch
      the world move outside the window.  

   +  Ask for contiguous seats, and make sure you're in the aisle
      seat, so you can contol your children.

   +  Mention that you're flying with children, so your seats won't be
      in the emergency exit row. Children under age 15 aren't allowed
      to sit in this row, so if your seats are there, you'll have to
      be moved when you arrive for the flight, and may not get
      contiguous seats. 

   +  If meals are served on the flight, ask for the special
      children's meal.

   +  Ask if they have any special services for children. Some
      airlines provide pins and model airplanes for older children,
      and sets of puzzles, games and toys for younger children. All
      airports have changing rooms.

Packing:

   +  Bring your child's favorite toys, books, teddy bear or blanket,
      and other amusements to keep them quiet on the plane. If 
      you bring along electronic games, be sure to turn the sound off,
      and make sure they don't use it during takeoff and landing.
      If you bring a favorite stuffed animal or blanket, be sure it is
      easily replaceable, in case it gets lost during the trip.

   +  Bring chewing gum and snacks to help them with air pressure
      changes during takeoff and landing. For younger children, bring
      a pacifier or a bottle of juice or milk. The flight attendants
      can warm your baby's bottle in the galley after they complete
      the safety dance. 

   +  Bring several spare diapers and baby blankets in your carry-on
      luggage, in addition to the usual emergency change of clothing.

   +  For a stoller which qualifies as a carryon, get one of the
      folding "umbrella" strollers.

Before the flight:

   +  If your children have never flown before, tell them how much fun
      it is, and try to build up some excitement (e.g., have a
      countdown calendar). 

Day of the flight:

   +  For carrying an infant, use a "front pack" or "Snugli" -- it's
      among the easiest. Be sure to get one with extra padding on the
      shoulder straps. At six months, you can switch to a baby back pack.

   +  Arrive early. Kids like to explore airports, and juggling kids
      AND bags will take time. Allow at least an hour in the airport
      for domestic flights and two hours for international flights.

   +  Watch your children carefully, to make sure they don't wander
      off. Airport personnel can help you locate lost children.

   +  Parents with children are allowed to board first, so take
      advantage of this "perk".

End of the flight:

   +  Wait until other passengers have gotten off the plane before you
      start gathering your belongings to deplane.

   +  Don't forget to count noses.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-9]  Tips for Business Travelers

If you travel frequently on business, here are some hints on making
the process more tolerable.

Credit Cards, Phone Cards:

   +  Get the limit on your credit card increased (or use a card like
      the American Express Card, which has no set limit). Between air
      fares (especially for one-way flights), hotels, taxis, and the
      like, you can easily run up a hefty bill. In addition, consider
      getting one of the cards that either gives you a cash rebate
      (Discover), rebates you on purchases of some products (GE card,
      GM/Ford cards, Citibank Apple card), or affinity cards that give
      you frequent flyer miles for every dollar spent. Carry two
      different kinds of cards (e.g., not every place accepts American
      Express, and some places will accept Mastercard but not Visa, 
      or vice versa).

   +  Get yourself a calling card from one of the major phone
      companies (AT&T, MCI, Sprint). Make sure it has a toll free
      access number.

Frequent Flyer, Hotel Promotions/Discounts:

   +  Sign up for ALL the various frequent flyer programs. You never
      know which airline you'll actually fly on, so it is best to
      accumulate mileage on all of them. You don't need to carry the
      cards -- just write down a list of your frequent flyer numbers
      on an index card, and carry that with you instead. You may want
      to consider signing up also for the AmEx membership miles
      program as well, even though it will cost you (Corporate AmEx
      cardholders only ($50); regular cardholders only after the first
      year ($25)). Make a list of their partners for car rentals and
      such -- you'll quickly add up miles on all your cards. Even if
      you get sick of air travel, you can always give the tickets to
      family members. Also join all the hotel clubs. (Some people
      advocate picking one program and sticking with it, to avoid the
      hassles of juggling many programs.)

   +  Your clients probably have a company discount with a nearby
      hotel. Such discounts can range from 10% to as much as 50% off.

Travel Agencies:

   +  Use a travel agency which provides a 24-hour number to handle
      problems. 

Ticketing:

   +  If you fly regularly to the same destination but not over a
      Saturday night, use the nested/overlapping tickets strategy,
      where one roundtrip ticket is bought from the destination's
      perspective, and you use the outgoing ticket of that ticket as
      your first trip's return and vice versa. This will save your
      company a lot of money, since both tickets magicly become Saturday
      night stay tickets.  An alternative is to buy two round trip
      tickets in the same manner, but with the return flights 30 days
      or so after your first trip. You'll use the outgoing portions of
      each ticket as before, but the return portions can be used for
      standby travel or may be changeable with a $35 change fee. If
      worse comes to worst and you can't use either of the returns,
      the cost of your flight will still be no more than a single
      midweek roundtrip.

   +  If you're visiting multiple cities, get your tickets as a circle
      trip instead of a series of round trips or one-way tickets. A
      circle trip has the savings benefits of supersaver fares, even
      if one of the segments isn't over a Saturday night.

   +  If you book two legs of a trip separately, you can avoid long
      delays in the airport by reducing the connection time. Since
      you're probably paying for one way tickets anyway, this probably
      won't affect the cost. Make sure you allow enough time, though,
      in case your flight is delayed and the other leg is at the other
      end of a big distributed airport. Note that on some airlines, if
      you miss a leg, you will not be able to pick up a later flight,
      even on standby. When you buy the tickets separately, the
      airline is no longer responsible if a late flight causes you to
      miss your connection. But if your ticket is refundable, you can
      cash it in and use it toward a later flight. (If your original
      ticket was a discount ticket, you'll have to pay the difference in
      fares between the two flights, if any. If your ticket was full
      fare, you won't.)

   +  Buy your tickets through an outfit like Price Club, which gives
      you a 5% rebate (which you pocket, of course).

   +  Since you paid cash for your (non-discount, refundable, changeable)
      tickets, most carriers will be glad to honor them (even if they
      are on another airline). So if you miss a flight, find the next
      flight to your destination on any carrier and talk to the gate
      agent there. Some airlines, however, will require the original
      airline to endorse the ticket over to them before they will
      accept it.

   +  If your flights are concentrated with one airline, get a copy of
      their flight schedules books. It will come in handy, especially
      when you miss flights.

Luggage and What to Carry:

   +  Carry lots of business cards and keep them handy. You will meet
      a lot of people on airplanes.

   +  Carry lots of good reading material. It gives you something to
      do when you do get stuck in an airport (or in a plane that's
      37th in line for takeoff).

   +  Buy inexpensive luggage. It will wear out no matter how good it
      is, so why pay $$$ for it when you'll have to replace it anyway?

   +  Carry a portable electric shaver (if male), soap, and shampoo
      with you. Not every hotel provides these amenities.

   +  Bring your own travel alarm. Not every hotel provides rooms with
      an alarm clock, although most will give you a wake-up call upon request.

   +  Carry the most important items with you as carry-ons. If you can
      travel light (no checked luggage), do so. Don't check anything
      you can't afford to lose. Carry at least one suit with you onto
      the plane, even if you have others in your checked luggage. 
      Being forced to wear a t-shirt and jeans to a meeting can ruin
      even the best of presentations. The "two carry-on" rule is
      widely ignored -- you can often get away with three carry-on
      bags, especially if one is a garment bag. Carry a duffel bag in
      your luggage for expansion space on the return, if you happen to
      buy any souvenirs. 

   +  Pack half the clothes you think you need, and use the hotel's
      dry cleaners. 

   +  If you use a laptop with modem, include a long modular phone
      cable with you (25 feet) and a modular jack splitter. Both are
      available at your local Radio Shack or drug store. Also buy a 15
      foot extension cord for your power supply.

At the Airport:

   +  Check you bags with the valet, and go straight to the gate with
      your tickets. Standing in line all the time at the check-in
      counter will rub you the wrong way after the nth time. Try to
      spend as little time as possible in lines at airports. Do not
      pick your flights at the airport ticket line; call the 800
      number instead. This effectively puts you ahead of everybody in line.

At the Hotel:

   +  Be nice to hotel and airline staff, and they'll be nice back.
      Use the hotel's concierge when you need something. They can help
      you find almost anything, from tickets to a concert, to rental
      car discounts, to aspirin, to restaurant recommendations, to
      good directions to your meeting site. Be sure to tip well. On
      airplanes, wait until the plane is in the air before you ask the
      flight attendants for anything, since boarding is the busiest
      time for them. 

   +  Ask for a room facing away from the highway and away from the
      elevator and ice machine, if you want to avoid noise.

Expenses:

   +  Take a modest amount of cash with you. Not everybody takes
      plastic, and you never know when you'll have trouble finding an ATM.

   +  Keep receipts, and log them on your expense report every day. If
      you don't record expenses right away, you'll forget them. Put
      the receipts in a separate envelope for each day and label it.
      Write notes on the receipts about the expenses, if it isn't clear from
      the receipt itself. When the taxi driver offers you a few
      extras, take them. You'll probably lose some of your receipts,
      and having a stash of blank ones can help you make up the loss.
      Complete your expense report before you return to work, and turn
      it in right away. That'll get you your reimbursement much sooner.

Miscellaneous:

   +  Get maps and use them to figure out where the meetings are and
      where the closest hotel is.

   +  Don't eat meat while on the road, or your health with suffer.
      Bring your own food with you for the flight; it's healthier and
      more pleasant.

   +  Arrange for your company to provide a service for remote dialin,
      so that you can call up and read your email. Either get your
      mail via one of the national commercial services (Prodigy,
      Compuserve, Delphi, etc.) or have them subscribe to an outfit
      like Sprintnet or Telenet which lets you dialup using local
      numbers in many locations around the world.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-10] Exchanging Currency

There are two factors involved in exchanging currency abroad, the
exchange rate and the commission fee. Don't rely solely on the
exchange rate, but factor in the commision as well. Commission fees
can vary significantly. So look for the best combination of exchange
rate and fee.

Since changing exchange rates can affect the value of your money,
you'll want to be cautious about the currency you carry. When the
dollar is strong, you'll want to carry dollars; when the dollar is
weak, you'll want to carry either the currency of the country you are
visiting, or a strong currency, such as Swiss francs.  When the dollar
is in flux, you'll want to carry both, and spend dollars when the
dollar is rising and foreign currency when the dollar is dropping.
When the dollar is dropping, try to pay for as many expenses as
possible in advance.

When the dollar is dropping, be careful with using credit cards. If
there is a delay in posting the transaction to your account, you'll
get a less favorable exchange rate. On the other hand, the exchange
rate used by the credit card companies is often better than that for
cash or traveler's checks. If you need extra cash, the exchange rate
used by ATMs is the preferential commercial/wholesale rate. [Although
true in most countries, it is not necessarily the case in Japan, where
the government sets the exchange rate.] Even with the interest charges
and/or transaction fee, getting a cash advance on your credit card or
bank card can sometimes be the cheapest (and most convenient) option,
because you don't pay a commission.  Thus using an ATM to get cash in
the foreign currency is probably one of the best and least expensive
methods. On the other hand, when the dollar is rising, you'll want to
pay by credit card when possible.

There are, however, some caveats about using an ATM. Not all ATMs
overseas can be used 24 hours a day; some are restricted to regular
banking hours only. As usual, there are daily withdrawal limits. Your
bank card or credit card must be on the Plus or Cirrus system for you
to be able to use it abroad. Both systems have more than 100,000 ATMs
in 40-50 foreign countries. Before you leave, call your bank to make
sure your PIN (personal identification number) will work in ATM
machines in the foreign country.

Before you leave, take at least $50 worth of foreign currency with
you, to pay for incidental expenses at the start of your trip (e.g.,
transportation from the airport to your hotel; taxicabs don't accept
credit cards overseas). Airport currency exchange offices have long
lines, and often charge a higher exchange rate than banks. Later on
you can get foreign currency for restraurants and other establishments
that don't accept credit cards. But don't take too much cash with you,
because flashing a big wad of bills is the quickest way to lose it.

If you buy traveler's checks, be careful when exchanging them for
foreign currency. Exchange rates and processing fees can vary
considerably, depending on which bank, exchange office, or hotel you
use. There is no fee for exchanging American Express traveler's checks
at American Express offices. Traveler's checks are safer than cash,
but you'll still want to be careful. The drawback to traveler's checks
is, of course, the 1-2% commission you pay when you buy them.

Traveler's checks are also available in foreign currency, including
British pounds, Canadian dollars, Dutch guilders, French francs,
German marks, Hong Kong dollars, Japanese yen, Spanish pesetas, and
Swiss francs. If the dollar is in flux or dropping, you'll want to buy
some traveler's checks in the foreign currency or in a strong
currency, such as Swiss francs. Many shops and restaurants will accept
traveler's checks that are denominated in the native currency, saving
you the bother of exchanging them.

Bring some dollars with you for the trip home (e.g., drinks and movies
on the plane, and cab fare home). If the dollar is very strong, you
may be able to get more for your money in open markets as dollars than
if you had exchanged them for the local currency.

Because you may have trouble doing exchange calculations in your head,
precompute the value of several common items in the foreign currency.
(Don't use items whose value in the foreign currency doesn't
correspond with their value in dollars.) Then use these items as
standards when shopping in the market. Chocolate bars and the cost of
lunch are good yardsticks. It won't be exact, but it'll give you a
quick and instinctive test for whether you're getting ripped off or
not.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-11] Frequent Flyer Programs

American Airlines introduced frequent flyer programs in 1981 to
encourage customer loyalty. The other major airlines quickly followed
suit. 

Most programs (e.g., United, American, USAir, and Northwest) will give you
a free domestic roundtrip for 20,000 miles, a ticket to Hawaii or the
Carribbean for 30,000, a ticket to Europe for 40,000 and a ticket to
Australia or Asia for 60,000. Each airline, however, has its own set
of rules and somewhat different mileage levels. Delta requires 30,000
miles for a free domestic ticket. Given joining bonuses and mileage
promotions, one can sometimes reach this with one overseas flight.
Northwest and USAir give you a minimum of 750 (Delta, 1000) miles for
each flight segment.  Northwest will give you two one-way tickets for
20,000 miles. NWA will not preissue boarding passes the day before the
flight. Some airlines will award two tickets for less than twice the
mileage needed for one ticket. For example, it is possible to get two
tickets to the Carribbean from Continental for only 40,000 miles.

Note: The minimum number of miles required for a domestic roundtrip
ticket will increase to 25,000 on United, USAir, and American on
8/1/94, 1/1/95, and 2/1/95, respectively. Since the travel
certificates are good for one year, be sure to redeem your frequent
flyer miles a few days before the deadline, or you'll have to earn an
extra 5,000 miles for a free ticket. Other changes include an increase
to 45,000 miles for a free first-class domestic ticket on American, an
increase to 50,000 miles for a free roundtrip ticket to Europe on
United (as of 2/1/95), and a reduction in the minimum number of FF
miles awarded per leg from 750 to 500 on Northwest. Northwest has also
announced that it is dropping out of the American Express Membership
Miles program (1 miles per $1 spent) on 3/31/94 or 4/30/94. Current
members of AmEx Membership Miles are Continental, Delta, Southwest,
and USAir.  Northwest is switching to an arrangement with First Bank
Visa (800-948-8300) and has already dropped their deal with Bank One
Visa.  Delta, Continental, USAir and Southwest are staying in the
program.  (Call 1-800-AXP-MILE for more information.)  United will
stop its practice of automatically mailing out award certificates at
the 20,000 mile mark on 10/1/94, and will issue them only upon
request, just like all the other frequent flyer programs.

Delta has established a "Rapid Redemption" program that allows you to
redeem your frequent flyer miles for free tickets when buying a ticket
by phone or at a Delta ticket office. There is a $60 charge, however,
for this service. (The charge is per transaction.) You can still
redeem the old way without the extra charge. Frequent flyer miles can
also be exchanged for upgrades at no extra charge.

Northwest's frequent flyer records do not seem to record flights that were
changed after ticketing, so check the records carefully. However, Northwest
recently installed a new phone system (1-800-327-2881) that lets you
request a review of tickets to adjust your account.

Air Canada              1-800-361-8523
   Partners with Austrian, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, First Air,
   Singapore
Alaska Airlines         1-800-654-5669
   Partners with Northwest, TWA
Aloha Airlines          1-800-486-7277
AAdvantage (American)   1-800-882-8880
   Partners with TWA, Cathay Pacific, Singapore, Canadian
   Cancels miles after 3 years.
America West            1-800-247-5691
   Partners with Virgin Atlantic
Canadian                1-604-270-7587
   Partners with Air France, Lufthansa, American, Qantas (for flights
   between Australia, Fiji, Hawaii, and Canada).
Continental             1-713-952-1630
   Partners with Air France, KLM.
Delta                   1-800-323-2323
   Partners with Air Canada, Air New Zealand, Japan Air Lines (no
   economy), KLM, Lufthansa, Singapore, Swissair 
   Restrictions: US/Canadian residents only, only with voucher,
   travel must originate in US.
Midwest Express         1-800-452-2022
Northwest               1-800-435-9696
   Partners with KLM.
TWA                     1-800-325-4815, 1-800-221-2000
   Partners with American, Alaska, Air India, British Airways
United                  1-800-421-4655
   Partners with Air France. Travel must originate in US. Also
   partners with SAS, Lufthansa, Alitalia. Mileage is given only
   for the legs connecting a U.S. city to Europe for theses airlines.
   If you are continuing onward to say Asia, you will not receive
   mileage on United on the leg from Europe to Asia.
USAir                   1-800-872-4738 (frequent traveler service ctr)
   1-800-442-2784 (international award travel)
   1-800-428-4322 (domestic reservations)
   Partners with British Airways and AF.
British Airways   1-800-955-2748
   Lets you combine the mileage for up to four family members.
   Partners with USAir.
Hawaiian Airlines Gold Plus 1-800-367-7637


USAir has a frequent flyer program for undertakers (or is it a
"frequent dier" program?). Ship 30 corpses with USAir, and you get a
free domestic round trip ticket.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-12] Premier FF Membership

If you travel more than a certain number of miles or flight segments
on some airlines, they'll upgrade your membership in their frequent
flyer program to Premier (Silver) or Gold status. These programs let
you earn frequent flyer miles more quickly, let you get free or cheap
upgrades, and get preferred seating.

For example, TWA gold card holders can upgrade any unrestricted coach
ticket to first class on a space available basis. (Likewise, in
Continental, if you pay full fare coach and are a FF member, they'll
upgrade you to first class.) Continental silver elite members get a
100% mileage bonus on subsequent flights. USAir waives blackout dates
and capacity controls for award travel by members of their frequent
flyer program who have reached the Priority Gold level.  The mileage
levels for status change vary from airline to airline, and the
benefits vary as well, but typically one or two overseas flights or
20,000 to 35,000 domestic miles will be sufficient to upgrade your
status.

Some airline reservation systems dynamicly modify the available
seating based on your frequent flyer membership status. The idea is to
reserve the desirable seats (window seats, far forward, away from
engine noise) for the more active members of the frequent flyer
program. Some airlines are also providing automatic free upgrades to
first class at reservation time to high mileage flyers.  So be sure to
give your frequent flyer number before asking for a seat assignment.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-13] Hotel Frequent Flyer Plans

Many large hotel chains offer frequent traveler incentives to their
guests, including free airline miles and points that are redeemable
for free hotel rooms. Some are even offering the free airline miles
without requiring a flight with the stay.

Here's a summary of what the hotels are now offering:

   Hilton:
     -  Airline Miles: 500 miles/stay.
        Airlines include Air Canada, American, America West, and
        United (no flight required); Delta and USAir (ticket and
        boarding pass required). 
     -  Points: 10 points per $1 spent. Redeemable for free weekend
        nights, sports tickets, and merchandise.
     -  May earn miles and points for same stay. Spouses may combine points.
     -  3 stays earn one free weekend night.
     -  Extra goodies for gold-level members (12 stays/year), such as
        airline club passes, boosts in FF membership status, and car
        rental club benefits.

   Holiday Inn:
     -  Airline Miles: 500 miles/stay, 2.5 miles per dollar spent.
        Airlines include Air Canada and Northeast (flight required),
        United and Northwest.
     -  Points: 1 point per $1 spent. Redeemable for free travel and
        merchandise. 
     -  May not earn miles and points for same stay. (No double dipping.)
     -  $10/year membership fee, waived for the first year.

   Hyatt:
     -  Airline Miles: 500 miles/stay for United mileage (no flight
        required), Alaska Airlines, Northwest, and USAir (flight
        required). 1000 miles/stay for Delta (flight required).
     -  Points: 5 points per $1 spent. Redeemable for free travel,
        room upgrades, and car rentals.
     -  May not earn miles and points for same stay. (No double dipping.)

   Marriott:
     -  Airline Miles: 500 miles/stay for American, British Airways,
        Northwest, or USAir. 1000 miles/stay for Continental or TWA
        (no flight required).  2,500 bonus miles after fifth stay.
        5,000 bonus miles for Continental.
     -  Points: 10 points per $1 spent. Bonus points from Hertz car
        rental. Redeemable for free travel, hotel rooms, and car rentals.
     -  Restrictions: In a given stay, can get points or miles, but
        not both.

   Sheraton:
     -  Sheraton Miles: 2 miles per $1 spent for (free) standard membership
        (blue club card), 3 miles per $1 spent for gold membership
        ($25/year, golden club card). Each Sheraton Mile is redeemable
        for one Airline Mile on American or United. Sheraton Miles are
        redeemable for free stays, special vacation packages, etc.
        Gold membership provides you with 4 pm late check-out
        guarantee, room upgrades, and other amenities.

Many hotels also offer discounts for members of certain groups. For
example, membership in AAA (American Automobile Association) or the
AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) for example can get you
a 10% discount at many hotels and motels. Visiting someone at a local
university or hospital can be good for either a discount or a room
upgrade, depending on the hotel. There are also often special
discounts for government employees and military personnel.

 Note that you don't need to be 65 to become a member of the AARP --
you can be as young as 50. You also don't necessarily need to be a
member of the AARP to take advantage of some discounts. For example,
if you're over 50, Choice Hotels offers a 30% discount for travelers
with advance reservations, 10% for those with no reservation. 

Always ask for the best price, especially in the off-peak travel season.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-14] Credit Card Voucher Offers

Several credit card companies offer vouchers for cheap airline travel
as an incentive to enroll students.

1. American Express.

   Students who apply for the standard green card ($55/year) or gold card
   ($75/year) will receive two vouchers if approved. Putting the vouchers
   to good use can easily result in your saving more than the cost of the
   card. Income and employment requirements for the gold card are waived
   for graduate students.  Two of the vouchers are good for travel
   anywhere in the continental United States (no more East/West zones) on
   Continental Airlines. However, the ticket prices are $179 during the
   school year, $239 for summer, spring break and other peak months (this
   is defined as "when you begin *OR* end your travel in March, July,
   August, or December"). You must stay over a Saturday night, and
   maximum stay is 10 days and 9 nights; there are no black-out dates
   listed. You may not purchase tickets until 14 days before the flight.
   Students report that they've had little trouble getting a
   last-minute reservation with the vouchers. They may have had to
   be flexible with their departure and return times and dates, but they've
   hardly ever had a problem getting to their destination. Traveling
   during off-peak times will increase your chances of getting a seat.
   Don't expect to be able to get a seat around Christmas and Thanksgiving.
   Tickets must be purchased using the American Express card.  In
   addition, cardholders will also receive two more Continental savings
   certificates, one for an international flight and one for domestic
   travel. All four certificates allow you to take along a student
   companion at the same price.  The vouchers expire 1 year after issue
   and are not transferrable (and the airlines do check your student id
   both at the ticket counter and at the gate). [Note: When travelling
   on Continental, beware of connections in their hub in Newark NJ.]

   To work around the non-transferrable restriction, use your first
   initial instead of your first name, and (if female) ask to have
   your maiden (alternately, married) name on the ticket (which
   allows you to substitute an arbitrary last name, if you're not
   bothered by the sleaziness). 

   [As of 9/1/93, USAir is no longer honoring the AmEx travel vouchers.] 
   Although the current AmEx tickets are for travel on Continental
   Airlines, USAir will honor them for travel on USAir (non-summer
   coupons only; you may use the non-summer coupons during the summer,
   however). Give the following promotion code to the travel agent 
   when using the AmEx/Continental vouchers for travel on USAir: 
      H/CO AMEX STUDENT 
   USAir seems less likely than Continental to check for student id.
   In general, USAir seems to accept coupons from almost any other airline.

   If you are a student, have an AmEx card and haven't received the
   vouchers, call the 800 number (1-800-582-5823 or 1-800-528-4800)
   and they'll send them out to your billing address.
   
2. Chase Manhattan VISA
   [ THIS PROGRAM HAS BEEN DISCONTINUED. ]
   Same cost structure as the AmEx/Continental vouchers ($129 if you
   don't cross the Mississippi River, $189 if you do), but for
   travel on USAir. Maximum stay of 60 days (Saturday stay not
   required). Tickets must be purchased within 48 hours of reservation.
   Valid student id must be presented at time of ticketing.
   Blackout dates around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and some
   destination-specific days.

3. Citibank VISA
   The Citibank AAdvantage VISA/MC charges a $50 annual fee (not a great
   deal, when no-fee VISA/MC cards abound). Earns 1 mile for every dollar
   spent. (You'd need to spend $25,000 to get a free PlanAAhead ticket.)
   Given the annual fee, not that good a deal. If you decide to get it,
   wait until American runs their next sign up bonus (typically either a
   free companion ticket or 5,000 free miles).

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-15] Telephone Companies

These programs give you frequent flyer miles for every dollar spent on
long distance phone calls. If you can, charge your phone bill to one of
the affinity credit cards to get even more miles. 

1. MCI. (Originated the idea in 1989.)
   MCI currently offers 4000 miles to enroll and 5 miles for every
   dollar spent.  Airlines include Northwest and American.

2. US Sprint. Airlines include TWA.

3. AT&T
   With the AT&T Reward program, you can earn frequent flier miles on
   Delta, United Airlines, or USAir (or free AT&T long distance
   certificates). During every month you spend $25 or more on long
   distance, you earn 5 frequent flier miles for every $1 spent. During
   the first month you get a triple bonus (quadruple credit). Call
   1-800-7-REWARD to enroll. Only calls billed via an AT&T calling
   card or dial 1 service are eligible. You don't have to decide what
   to do with your credits until you cash them in, and you can get 5%
   cash back instead, if you prefer.

Other relevant programs:
   + Air Miles Program 800-222-2AIR

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [3-16] Discount Coupon Offers 

Discount coupons for air travel can often be obtained from a variety
of sources:

  -  AAA has included dollars-off coupons for travel on USAir and
     United in their membership newsletter in the past.

  -  Some catalogs and magazines, especially those associated with business
     equipment, such as the AT&T phone catalog, have included coupons
     for savings on flights on Continental and Northwest.

  -  The Entertainment book has discount coupons for up to $100 off a
     Continental Airline ticket. 

  -  Supermarkets in California periodically offer promotions
     providing discount coupons upon purchase of a certain amount of
     groceries. 

  -  Discover card and other credit cards have on occasion included
     discount certificates with the monthly bills. Others offer discount
     certificates for opening an account. See also "Credit Card
     Voucher Offers" above.

The coupons typically have several blackout dates, require a Saturday
night stay, and have a lot of fine print, but are often transferable.
People will often advertise to sell these coupons over the net.

You can also get travel discount coupons in some of the travel
discount books, but you can almost certainly get them for free from
some of the publications listed above. But if you can't find one,
spending $20 to save $50 is probably worth it. Such entertainment
books include 800-513-6000 ($19.95, includes United coupon),
800-445-4137 (Continental coupon).

----------------------------------------------------------------


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 08-13-94                         Msg # 22769  
  To: ALL                              Conf: (2120) news.answers
From: mkant@cs.cmu.edu                 Stat: Public
Subj: FAQ: Air Traveler's Handb        Read: No
------------------------------------------------------------------------
@SUBJECT:FAQ: Air Traveler's Handbook 4/4 [Monthly posting]           
@PACKOUT:08-13-9440.13081994.0920@channel1.com                        
Message-ID: <AIRFARE_4_776761236@CS.CMU.EDU>
Newsgroups: rec.travel.air,news.answers,rec.answers
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon University

Archive-name: travel/air/handbook/part4
Last-Modified: Fri Jul 22 01:12:48 1994 by Mark Kantrowitz
Version: 1.13
Size: 53728 bytes

;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Airfare FAQ, Part 4 ********************************************
;;; ****************************************************************
;;; Written by Mark Kantrowitz

This post is a summary of useful information for air travelers. The
focus is on obtaining inexpensive air fares, although other topics are
also covered. It was previously posted under the title "FAQ: How to
Get Cheap Airtickets".

Please mail comments, corrections, additions, suggestions, criticisms
and other information to mkant@cs.cmu.edu.

*** Copyright:

Copyright (c) 1989-94 by Mark Kantrowitz. All rights reserved.

This FAQ may be freely redistributed in its entirety without
modification provided that this copyright notice is not removed.  It
may not be sold for profit or incorporated in commercial documents
(e.g., published for sale on CD-ROM, floppy disks, books, magazines,
or other print form) without the prior written permission of the
copyright holder.  Permission is expressly granted for this document
to be made available for file transfer from installations offering
unrestricted anonymous file transfer on the Internet.

This article is provided AS IS without any express or implied warranty.

*** Topics Covered:

Part 4 (Appendices, Miscellaneous):

   Appendices:
   [4-1]  Airline Reservation Phone Numbers
   [4-2]  Flight Information
   [4-3]  On-line reservation services
   [4-4]  Complaints and Compliments
   [4-5]  Glossary
   [4-6]  Other Sources of Information
   [4-7]  Further Reading
   [4-8]  Phone Numbers Included in this FAQ
   
   Miscellaneous:
   [4-9]  IRS Rules Change
   [4-10] Airline Antitrust Litigation
   [4-11] Miscellaneous Notes

Search for [#] to get to question number # quickly.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-1]  Airline Reservation Phone Numbers

If the toll free number is incorrect, do me a favor and call
1-800-555-1212 to get the correct 800 number, and send me email with
the correction. Three or four of these numbers change every year.

Alaska Airlines          1-800-426-0333, [1-602-921-3100]
American                 1-800-433-7300, 1-800-223-5436, [1-817-267-1151]
America West             1-800-235-9292, [1-602-693-0737]
Continental              1-800-525-0280 (Dom), 1-800-231-0856 (Itl)
                                         [1-404-436-3300]
Delta                    1-800-221-1212, [1-404-765-5000]
Northwest                1-800-225-2525 (Dom), 800-447-4747 (Itl)
                                         [1-612-726-1234]
Southwest                1-800-IFLY-SWA, [1-800-435-9792], 1-800-531-5601
TWA                      1-800-221-2000, [1-404-522-5738]
United                   1-800-241-6522 (Dom), 1-800-538-2929 (Itl),
                                         [1-312-825-2525]
USAir                    1-800-428-4322 (Dom), 1-800-622-1015 (Itl),
                                        [1-412-922-7500]

Aer Lingus               1-800-223-6537
AeroMexico               1-800-237-6639
Aerolineas Argentinas    1-800-333-0276
Air Canada               1-800-776-3000
Air France               1-800-237-2747
Air India                1-800-223-2250
Air Jamaica              1-800-523-5585
Air New Zealand          1-800-262-1234
Alitalia                 1-800-223-5730
All Nippon Airways       1-800-235-9262
Avianca                  1-800-284-2622
BWIA International       1-800-327-7401
British Airways          1-800-247-9297, [1-800-AIR-WAYS]
Canadian Partners        1-800-426-7000
Cathay Pacific Airways   1-800-233-2742
Dominicana Airlines      1-800-327-7240
Ecuatoriana              1-800-328-2367
Egyptair                 1-800-334-6787
El Al Israel Airlines    1-800-223-6700
Emirates                 1-800-777-3999
Finnair                  1-800-950-5000
Hawaiian Airlines        1-800-367-5320
Iberia                   1-800-772-4642
Icelandair               1-800-223-5500
Japan Air Lines          1-800-525-3663
KLM                      1-800-374-7747
Korean Air               1-800-421-8200
Lufthansa                1-800-645-3880
Malaysia Airlines        1-800-421-8641
Malev Hungarian          1-800-223-6884
Mexicana                 1-800-531-7921
Midway Airlines          1-800-621-5700
Midwest Express Airlines 1-800-452-2022
Olympic Airways          1-800-223-1226
Philippine Airlines      1-800-435-9725, [1-800-IFLY-PAL]
Polish Air-Lot           1-800-223-0593
Quantas Airways          1-800-227-4500
Royal Jordanian          1-800-223-0470
SAS Scandinavian Air     1-800-221-2350
SKY BUS                  1-800-755-9287
Sabena                   1-800-955-2000
Saudia Arabian Airlines  1-800-472-8342
Singapore Airlines       1-800-742-3333
Swissair                 1-800-221-4750
TAP Air Portugal         1-800-221-7370
Thai Airways             1-800-426-5204
Varig                    1-800-468-2744
Virgin Atlantic          1-800-862-8621

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-2]  Flight Information

OAG FlightCall                  900-786-8686 ($.95/min)
   Flight arrival/departure/gate information for 17 US airports

USAir Flight Info               800-943-5436
   Arrival/departure/gate information for all USAir flights

American Airlines               800-223-5436
   Arrival/departure/gate/schedules/fare information for all American
   Airlines flights. Good explanation of why flight is delay.

Northwest Airlines              800-441-1818/800-225-2525
   Arrival/departure information for all NW flights.

Delta Airlines                  800-DAL-1999 
   Arrival/departure information for all Delta flights.

United                          800-824-6200

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-3]  On-line reservation services

Note: NONE of the on-line airline reservation systems provide free
access, and it is unlikely that they ever will. 

On-line airline reservation systems typically allow you to check fares
and schedules and make reservations on most airlines. You can also
pay for the tickets, which can then be sent by mail, or issued at the
airline's airport ticket counter or city ticket office, or by most
travel agents. Some allow you to maintain an online profile of
information to be inserted into your reservations, such as frequent
flyer number and special meal requests. These systems provide the same
basic scheduling and pricing data as the ones used by travel agents,
but with a different user interface, and restricted access to some
information. 

The major airline reservation systems with online interfaces are Eaasy
Sabre (owned by the parent company of American Airlines),
Travelshopper (owned by Worldspan, formerly known as PARS), and
Official Airline Guide. 

Don't assume that on-line reservation systems are necessarily
complete. In today's electronic age, all too often folks assume that
if information isn't available in electronic form, it doesn't exist at
all. A good travel agent will often be able to find you a cheaper fare
than you can find for yourself, especially for complicated
itineraries (e.g., unpublished consolidator fares). If you like using
an on-line reservation system, use it to identify possible flights and
times, and to get a feeling for the lowest fare, and then talk to your
travel agent. Be as flexible with your travel agent and you were with
the on-line system -- tell them how much you're willing to modify your
travel plans. But don't just give them the flights you found in your
on-line searches; take advantage of their expertise, and ask them if
they can find anything cheaper.

Eaasy Sabre can be accessed as a basic service (no additional fee)
from the following online services:  
   America Online ($9.95/month; two hours "free" access included.)
   Compu$erve (1-800-848-8199; part of basic service, $8.95/month);
      use the terminal interface version rather than the Compuserve
      Information Manager (CIM). 
   Delphi ($10/month for four hours, or $20 for twenty hours)
   National Videotex ($5.95/month)
   Prodigy (1-800-822-6922)
Prodigy replaces the Eaasy Sabre interface with their own user interface.
GENIE provides Eaasy Sabre for free (other than the $4.95/month basic
service fee), assuming you use it during their off-peak hours, which
are 6pm-8am weekdays, all day holidays and weekends. Delphi has an
internet gateway (delphi.com), but one must still pay for the service.

PARS TravelShopper is available on Compu$erve and Delphi.

Official Airline Guide (OAG) Electronic Edition is available on
Compu$erve, Delphi, direct TYMNET (with credit card billing), GEnie
(for a surcharge), Dow Jones News Retrieval, and National VideoTex
(Premium Plus Service; $12/hour charge plus Premium surcharge of $6/hr
non-business, $9/hour business hours). It is also available on the
Internet (telnet to oag.com), but you have to subscribe first to get a
login userid.  

OAG is also accessible via Sprintnet from the hermes.merit.edu
gateway, but charges by the minute (17 cents/minute offpeak). It can
be fairly expensive, but since it has no monthly minimum, it can be
the cheapest for infrequent users. Also, if the last thing you do
before logging off is make or cancel a reservation, the session is
free.

None of these save you the commission charges, so it doesn't save you
much over calling the airline's 800 number or using a travel agent and
asking lots of "what-if" questions.

All providers of computer reservation systems are required to be
non-biased (e.g., even though Eaasy Sabre is owned by American
Airline's parent company, they don't preferentially list American
first). Some accomplish this by listing the flights in a particular
order, like
   shortest non-stop flights
   shortest flights with transit point(s)
   shortest aggregate times for one-city connections
   shortest aggregate times for multi-city connections.
but in random order within each category. Travel agents can, of
course, restrict the display to the flights of specific carrier(s).

The major computer reservation systems (CRS) are: Apollo (United,
USAir), EAASY SABRE (American), System One (Continental),
Worldspan-PARS (Northwest, TWA), and Worldspan-DATAS II (Delta). Each
carrier also has its own internal reservation system. All of the major
CRS's are interconnected, so you can make a reservation for one
airline on a system owned by a different carrier. However, in some
cases the connections are by TTS (yikes!), so it can take up to 24
hours to actually confirm the reservation. Some of the systems have
faster links (e.g., EAASY SABRE has fast links with United, Delta, and
Continental). When the reservation is complete, you'll get a record
locator number (6 alphanumeric characters). This number can allow a
travel agent to locate the reservation. (In general, even when placing
a reservation with a travel agent, it's a good idea to ask for and
record the record locator number.)

OAG sells subscriptions to "OAG Flightdisk", a flight schedule
information program that is updated monthly. It contains the same
flight information as the airline reservation systems. (Of course, you
can't make reservations with it, but this might be a cheaper
alternative than the online services for some people.) The cost is
$216 for the North American Edition (US, Canada, Mexico, and the
Caribbean), $216 for the European Edition (Europe, Africa, and the
Middle East), or $269 for the Worldwide Edition. It comes in DOS,
Windows, and Macintosh versions.  For more information, write to
Official Airline Guides, 2000 Clearwater Drive, Oak Brook, IL 60521,
call 1-800-323-3537, or fax 708-574-6565. (Prices valid until
4/15/94.) OAG also sells (printed) subscriptions to OAG Pocket Flight
Guide for $70 a year (normally $87); it comes with a free subscription
to Frequent Flyer Magazine and a copy of the OAG Top Restaurant Guide.
Call 1-800-DIAL-OAG (1-800-342-5624) and mention special offer 2AZV6
to subscribe or for more information.  (Offer valid through 3/31/94.)

For domestic flight information and pricing, such services are
supposed to be as accurate as the information available to travel
agents and the airlines themselves. The same may not necessarily be
true for flights originating outside the US. Note, also, that
consolidator fares are NOT listed in online services, nor in the
databases used by airlines and travel agents. Consolidator fares are
obtained by calling up the consolidators themselves.

More information on online CRS's can be found in John Levine's FAQ on
the topic, a copy of which may be found in
   ftp.cs.cmu.edu:/user/mkant/Travel/
as the file online.faq.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-4]  Complaints and Compliments

If you have a legitimate complaint about service, write a
well-written letter to the appropriate people at the airline. This can
often result in real results. But don't become a habitual complainer.
Many airline customer service departments keep records of all
complaints and compliments. If you complain too often, you'll get
tagged as a flamer, and they'll ignore future complaints. If you are a
frequent flyer and don't complain often, complaints can end up in
travel discount compensation.

Airlines do keep track of who complains and how frequently, so if you
complain too often about trivial matters, your complaints won't have
the same effect as they would if you complained about only important
problems. Keep track of the names of all airline personnel you deal
with, and be as specific as possible about dates, times, places, and
flight numbers in your letter. Enclose copies of any receipts for
expenses incurred because of missed/delayed flights. 

When writing a complaint letter, tell the airline what it can do to make
you happy. If you're realistic and reasonable, giving them some
leeway, your complaints will be addressed much more quickly. Venting
anger in a complaint letter won't get you results. Remember, the
people reading your letter aren't the cause of the problem, and they
have to read thousands of angry letters. They're human beings, with
feelings. So if they get a nice, calm letter, that describes the
problem, suggests a solution, and says what you want to make you
happy, they are much more likely to respond positively.

If you're complaining on the spot (e.g., they lost your reservation)
and feel you're not making headway with the agent/clerk you're talking
to, try asking to speak to a supervisor or manager. Sometimes clerks
don't have the authority to address the problem. The more flexible you
are, the more likely they are to come up with a solution that
satisfies you. Losing your temper and getting loud won't help.
Remember, the person you're talking to probably wasn't responsible for
the problem, so yelling at them hurts them without being productive. 
(Breaking down into tears will get you a lot further than any quantity
of angry words.) If you're making no progress, try calling your travel
agent collect and telling them about the problem.

Whatever you do, please don't complain about something minor or make
meaningless threats. Saying "I'm going to tell all my friends to stop
using your airline" or "I'll make a post on netnews, nyeah, nyeah,
nyeah, nyeah" really won't accomplish anything, unless you happen to
be the CEO of a large multinational firm.

   The Department of Transportation accepts consumer complaints
about airlines and records, compiles, and publishes statistics on
airline performance. The statistics are available in a monthly Air
Travel Consumer Report. For a free copy, write to the Office of
Consumer Affairs, US Department of Transportation, 400 Seventh Street, NW,
Room 10405, Washington, DC 20590. 202-366-2220. The statistics vary a
lot from month to month. They receive 400-500 complaints a month from
consumers. Here are statistics for 1993:

   On-time (within 15 minutes of schedule):
      Best  -- Southwest    88.0%
               Northwest    85.7%
               America West 79.9%
               American     79.3%
               TWA          77.9%
               Delta        77.2%
               USAir        76.7%
               Continental  74.6%
               United       73.7%
      Worst -- Alaska       68.5%
      Avg   -- 83%
   Overbooking:
      Best  -- American 89 involuntary bumps/19 million passengers
      Worst -- America West 1,805/3.7 million
   Mishandled baggage:
      Best  -- Southwest
      Worst -- America West
   Complaints per 100,000 fliers:
      Best  -- Southwest    0.10
               America West 0.48
               Delta        0.50
               Northwest    0.55
               USAir        0.58
               United       0.67
               American     0.88
               Continental  1.28
      Worst -- TWA          1.45
On average, airlines mishandle 4.75 bags per 1,000 passengers.

According to a recent survey by JD Powers & Associates, for long
trips, customer satisfaction was highest on Delta, Continental, and
Northwest, and for short trips, customer satisfaction was highest on
Delta, Southwest, and Alaska.

Customer Relations Departments of various airlines:
Aloha Airlines Inc., Customer Relations, PO Box 30028, Honolulu, HI 96820.
Alaska Airlines, Consumer Affairs, PO Box 68900, Seattle, WA 98168. 
American Airlines, 1-800-967-2000
America West Airlines, Consumer Affairs, 222 South Mill Ave., Tempe,
AZ 85281, 1-800-247-5692.
Continental Airlines, Customer Relations, PO Box 4607, Houston, TX
77210-4607, 712-987-6500.
Delta Air Lines Inc., Consumer Affairs, Hartsfield Atlanta Int Airport, 
   Atlanta, GA 30320, 404-765-2600. 
Eastern Air Lines Inc., Consumer Affairs, Bldg 11, Rm 1433, Miami Int Airport,
   Miami, FL 33148.
Hawaiian Airlines, Consumer Affairs, Honolulu Intl Airport, PO Box 30008, 
   Honolulu, HI 96820-0008.
Northwest Airlines, Consumer Affairs, Minneapolis/St. Paul Intl Airport, 
   St. Paul, MN 55111, 612-726-2046.
Pan American World Airways Inc., Consumer Affairs Dept, 200 Park Avenue, 
   New York, NY 10166.
Southwest Airlines Co., Customer Relations, PO Box 37611, Love Field, 
   Dallas, TX 75235-1625, 214-904-4000.
Trans World Airlines Inc., Customer Relations, 605 Third Ave., New
   York, 10158, 914-242-3172.
United Airlines, Customer Relations, PO Box 66100, Chicago, IL 60666,
   312-952-7843.  
USAir, Consumer Relations, Washington National Airport, Washington, DC
   20001, 703-892-7020. 

Federal Aviation Administration, 202-366-2220.
American Society of Travel Agents, Consumer Affairs Dept., 703-739-2782.

If you encounter problems as a result of buying tickets from a
fly-by-night organization (pun intended), contact the Better Business
Bureau, the state office of consumer protecture, and/or the attorney
general's office. You can protect yourself by using a credit card to
purchase the tickets and by confirming your reservation directly with
the airline. 

If you ask the flight attendant for a comment card, they'll provide
one. (Most of the comment cards use business reply mail, so you don't
even have to pay for the stamp. But there isn't much space on the
cards, so you may be better off writing a letter and paying the
postage yourself.)

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-5]  Glossary

Fly-by-wire aircraft
   Fly-by-wire aircraft use a computerized control system that decides
   how to best control surface movements, engine fuel-flow rates, and so
   on. There is no direct connection between the pilot and the flight
   control surfaces in this kind of setup. Instead, the pilot gives
   instructions to the computer which interprets them, hopefully
   correctly. The computer is able to update the settings hundreds of
   times per second, something human pilots can't do, and in theory
   results in a more efficient, smoother, and safer flight. Some more
   recent planes are even able to land themselves. The controversy with
   such planes concerns their failure modes. If the computer conks out
   for some reason, it may not be possible for the pilot to dead-stick
   the plane in for a landing, since some of the more efficient control
   surfaces must have their parameters updated very frequently to remain
   airborn. Also, some early fly-by-wire planes may have had programming bugs
   that caused unexpected behavior. Finally, the Airbus A320, a
   fly-by-wire aircraft, has been perceived as accident-prone,
   allegedly because of the fly-by-wire system, though this has never
   been proven. Currently the only fly-by-wire commercial airplanes
   are the Airbus A320 and A340, with the A319, A321, A330, the Boeing
   777 and the Tupolev TU204 entering production shortly. Many
   military aircraft have been fly-by-wire for years. (For further
   discussion of fly-by-wire aircraft, see the extensive RISK archives on
   this topic.)

"Glass-cockpit" aircraft
   Such aircraft are not fly-by-wire. They display several flight
   instruments on a CRT screen in the cockpit, and have an integrated
   flight management system (sophisticated autopilots) but still have a
   direct connection between the cockpit control column and the control
   surfaces. The MD-11 and some MD-80s are examples of glass-cockpit
   planes that aren't fly-by-wire. 

Overbooking
   The airline practice of selling more tickets than there are seats
   on the aircraft. Airlines like to fly full flights, the fuller the
   better. Since on any given flight there are likely to be one or two
   no-shows, the airlines tend to oversell the flight to compensate.
   If more people show up than there are seats, the airline will first
   ask for passengers to voluntarily give up their seats in exchange
   for an incentive of the airline's choosing (e.g., typically a free
   round trip ticket), and then if there aren't enough volunteers, the
   airline will involuntarily bump some of the passengers. DOT rules
   specify how the airlines must compensate involuntarily bumped passengers.

DOT
   US Department of Transportation

Codes
   Every scheduled airline has a two character code, and most also
   have a three-character code. For example, United Airlines is UA,
   USAir is US, and Southwest is WN. Most charter airlines have two-
   character codes, and some have three-character codes. Some airlines
   share their two-character codes, and some airlines have more than one code.
   Airports have three-character designations, with BOS for Boston, PIT for
   Pittsburgh, and EWR for Newark, among others.

Code-sharing
   Some airlines have "code-sharing" agreements with other airlines,
   in which each airline may list flights on the other airline
   under their own "code". Thus, when consumers purchase tickets from
   an airline, the actual flight (or some segments of the flight) may
   be on an entirely different carrier. These agreements typically
   arise as special arrangements linking the routes of a US airline
   with a foreign carrier. For example, United Airlines and Lufthansa,
   USAir and British Airways, American Airlines and South Africa
   Airways, etc.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-6]  Other Sources of Information

   The best source of information is the US Department of
Transportation. All carriers must file their fares with them for
tariff purposes.

   A variety of companies publish rate guides based on the US
Department of Transportation files. The subscription prices are a bit
steep, but your library may have some.

The Travelers' Tales Travel Resource Center provides travelers with
current information on international news, weather, discounted air
tickets, access to Internet travel newsgroups, currency rates and
where and how to use credit cards, and much more. The Travel Resource
Center was created by O'Reilly & Associates as an informational
companion to their Travelers' Tales books.  The Travel Resource Center
is a free service, and can be accessed through the Global Network
Navigators' Marketplace section. (To view GNN or the Travel Resource
Center you must be able to support the WWW [World Wide Web] browser.
The URL for the TRC is http://nearnet.gnn.com/mkt/travel/center.html.)
To obtain a free subscription to GNN, send an email message to:
info@gnn.com. Additional information about this free service can be
obtained by writing to Allen Noren <allen@ora.com>.

The rec.travel Library is available by anonymous ftp from
   ftp.cc.umanitoba.ca:/rec-travel.
A WWW server for the library is
   ftp://ftp.cc.umanitoba.ca/rec-travel/README.html

Travel and recreation information, including discount travel packages,
are listed on The Avid Explorer at the URL
   http://www.explore.com

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-7]  Further Reading

Consumer Reports Travel Letter
   $39/yr, monthly
   Subcription Department
   Pox 51366
   Boulder CO 80321-1366
   800-234-1970

   Backissues cost $5 and may be ordered from 
     Consumers Reports, PO Box 53016, Boulder, CO 80322-3016.


Best Fares Magazine:
   Covers air fares, hotels, car rentals, etc. Includes a TravelAmerica
   half-price hotel book and coupons for reduced airfares.
   Consumer Edition:  $58/year
   Corporate Edition: $78/year (includes hidden cities in airfares)
   Best Fares, Inc.
     1111 W. Arkansas Lane, Suite C, Arlington, TX 76013, or
     PO Box 171212, Arlington, TX 76003
   817-261-6114 or 817-543-0538

Travel Unlimited: (World-wide courier flight information and travel tips.)
   $25/year, monthly
   Box 1058
   Allston, MA 02134

Official Airline Guide, Pocket Edition:
   $82/year
   1-800-323-3537

American Express Sky Guide:
   $45/year (12 issues)
   1-800-678-6738 x111.
   Skyguide, PO Box 5146, Harlan, IA  51593-2646

The Official Frequent Flyer Guidebook - 2nd Edition, 320 pages.
   Information about airline, credit card, hotel, and car rental programs. 
   Published by AirPress (publisher of InsideFlyer) 
   $14.99 plus $3 shipping
   1-800-487-8893

   Some articles from InsideFlyer can be viewed at no charge on "The
   Electronic Newsstand, a service which collects articles,
   editorials, and table of contents from over 100 magazines and
   provides them to the Internet community. The Electronic Newsstand
   is accessible by Gopher at
      gopher://gopher.internet.com:2100/
   or by telnet to gopher.internet.com (userid "enews", no password).
   For more information, write to staff@enews.com.

"Going Places: The High School Student's Guide to Study, Travel, and
Adventure Abroad", St. Martin's Press, $13.95. This book is compiled
by the Council on International Educational Exchange, and gives
information on more than 200 travel programs for students ages 12 to 18.

The European Travel Commission's 1994 guide to planning a trip to
Europe is available for free from European Planner/Dept. A, Box 1754,
New York, NY 10185.

For the "European Planning & Rail Guide", send $1 to BETS Planning
Guide, Budget European Travel Service, 2557 Meade Court, Ann Arbor, MI
48105. 

For a free copy of "101 Tips for Adventure Travelers", call
1-800-873-5628, or write to 101 Tips, Overseas Adventure Travel, 349
Broadway, Cambridge, MA 02139.

For a free copy of "Discover America: A Listing of State and
Territorial Travel Offices of the United States", send a
self-addressed, stamped envelope to Discover America, c/o Travel
Industry Association of America, Dept. A, 1133 21st Street, NW,
Washington, DC 20036. It includes a comprehensive list of tourist
offices and phone numbers. Many tourist offices will send you free
maps and travel guides.

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-8]  Phone Numbers Included in this FAQ

800 Information                                         800-555-1212
A-1 International       Courier (Miami)                 305-594-1184
AAdvantage (American)   Frequent Flyer Miles            800-882-8880
AT&T Reward Program     Frequent Flyer Miles (Phone)    800-7-REWARD
AUSTRAVEL               Consolidator                    415-781-4329
AUSTRAVEL               Consolidator                    415-781-4358 fax
AUSTRAVEL               Consolidator                    800-633-3404
Aer Lingus              Reservations                    800-223-6537
AeroMexico              Reservations                    800-237-6639
Aerolineas Argentinas   Reservations                    800-333-0276
Air Canada              Frequent Flyer Miles            800-361-8523
Air Canada              Reservations                    800-776-3000
Air Facilities          Courier (Miami)                 305-477-8300
Air France              Reservations                    800-237-2747
Air India               Reservations                    800-223-2250
Air Jamaica             Reservations                    800-523-5585
Air Miles Program       Frequent Flyer Miles            800-222-2AIR
Air New Zealand         Reservations                    800-262-1234
AirHitch                Consolidator                    212-864-2000
AirPress                InsideFlyer/FF Guidebook        800-487-8893
AirTech                 Consolidator                    800-575-TECH
Airbrokers              Consolidator                    800-883-3273
Airfares for Less       Bargain Travel Agency           800-AIR-FARE
Airlines Antitrust                                      800-854-7264
Alaska Airlines         Frequent Flyer Miles            800-654-5669
Alaska Airlines         Reservations                    602-921-3100
Alaska Airlines         Reservations                    800-426-0333 
Alitalia                Reservations                    800-223-5730
All Nippon Airways      Reservations                    800-235-9262
Aloha Airlines          Frequent Flyer Miles            800-486-7277
Am. Soc. of Travel Agts Complaints and Compliments      703-739-2782
AmEx Membership Miles   Frequent Flyer Miles            800-AXP-MILE
AmEx Sky Guide          Newsletter                      800-678-6738 x111
America West            Frequent Flyer Miles            800-247-5691
America West            Reservations                    602-693-0737
America West            Reservations                    800-235-9292
America West Airlines   Complaints and Compliments      800-247-5692
American                Reservations                    800-223-5436
American                Reservations                    800-433-7300
American                Reservations                    817-267-1151
American Airlines       Complaints and Compliments      800-967-2000
American Airlines       Flight Information              800-223-5436
American Express        Student Travel Vouchers         800-582-4800
American Express        Student Travel Vouchers         800-582-5823
Avianca                 Reservations                    800-284-2622
BWIA International      Reservations                    800-327-7401
Best Fares Magazine     Newsletter                      817-261-6114/543-0538
Best Travel Service     Consolidator                    713-777-4888
Best Travel Service     Consolidator                    800-800-4788
British Airways         Frequent Flyer Miles            800-955-2748
British Airways         Reservations                    800-AIR-WAYS
(247-9297)
CIEE   International Student ID Card 800-438-2643
Canadian                Frequent Flyer Miles            604-270-7587
Canadian Partners       Reservations                    800-426-7000
Cathay Pacific Airways  Reservations                    800-233-2742
Center for Disease Ctrl It'l Health Information         404-332-4559
Cheap Tickets           Consolidator                    800-377-1000
Citizens Consular Srvcs US State Department             202-647-3444
Citizens Emergency Ctr  US State Department             202-647-5225
City Link               Courier (LA)                    213-410-9063
Compu$erve              Online CRS                      800-848-8199
Consumer Rpts Trvl Ltr  Newsletter                      800-234-1970
Continental             Frequent Flyer Miles            713-952-1630
Continental             Reservations                    404-436-3300
Continental             Reservations (Dom)              800-525-0280 
Continental             Reservations (Itl)              800-231-0856
Continental Airlines    Complaints and Compliments      712-987-6500
Council Travel (CIEE)   Student Travel Agency           800-800-8222
Courier Travel Service  Courier (NY)                    516-763-6898
Courier Travel Service  Courier (NY)                    718-244-0101 
Courier Travel Service  Courier (NY)                    800-922-2359
Crossroads It'l         Courier (LA)                    213-643-8600
Delta                   Frequent Flyer Miles            800-323-2323
Delta                   Reservations                    404-765-5000
Delta                   Reservations                    800-221-1212
Delta AIrlines          Flight Information              800-DAL-1999 
Delta Air Lines         Complaints and Compliments      404-765-2600
Dominicana Airlines     Reservations                    800-327-7240
East-West Express       Courier (NY)                    516-561-2360
Ecuatoriana             Reservations                    800-328-2367
Egyptair                Reservations                    800-334-6787
El Al Israel Airlines   Reservations                    800-223-6700
Emirates                Reservations                    800-777-3999
Entertainment Books     W/Discount Coupon (Continental) 800-445-4137
Entertainment Books     W/Discount Coupon (United)      800-513-6000
FAA                     Complaints and Compliments      202-366-2220
Federal Trade Comm.     Telemarketing Travel Fraud      202-326-2222
Finnair                 Reservations                    800-950-5000
First Bank Visa         Northwest Affinity Card         800-948-8300
Gateway Express         Courier (San Francisco)         415-344-7833
Global Access           Consolidator                    800-283-5333
Guide Books             Guide to Courier Travel         800-344-9375
Halbart                 Courier (NY)                    718-656-8189
Halbart                 Courier (NY)                    718-656-8279
Halbart                 Courier (NY)                    718-995-7019
Hawaiian Airlines       Frequent Flyer Miles            800-367-7637
Hawaiian Airlines       Reservations                    800-367-5320
IBC                     Courier (NY)                    718-262-8058
IBC Pacific             Courier (LA)                    310-607-0125
ISE                     $20 Rebate/Citibank             800-255-7000
Iberia                  Reservations                    800-772-4642
Icelandair              Reservations                    800-223-5500
IntraTours              Consolidator                    713-952-0662
IntraTours              Consolidator                    800-334-8069 
It'l Student Exchange   Student Travel Agency           602-951-1177
Japan Air Lines         Reservations                    800-525-3663
Jupiter Air             Courier (LA)                    310-670-5123
Jupiter Air             Courier (NY)                    718-341-2095
Jupiter Air             Courier (NY)                    718-656-6050
KLM                     Reservations                    800-374-7747
Kelly Monaghan          Insider's Guide to Courier...   800-356-9315
Korean Air              Reservations                    800-421-8200
LAB                     League of American Bicyclists   800-288-BIKE (= 2453)
Line Haul Services      Courier (Miami)                 305-477-0651
Lufthansa               Reservations                    800-645-3880
Malaysia Airlines       Reservations                    800-421-8641
Malev Hungarian         Reservations                    800-223-6884
Mexicana                Reservations                    800-531-7921
Midnight Express        Courier (LA)                    310-673-1100
Midway Airlines         Reservations                    800-621-5700
Midwest Express         Frequent Flyer Miles            800-452-2022
Midwest Express Airlns  Reservations                    800-452-2022
Nippon Travel           Consolidator                    800-662-6236
Northwest               Frequent Flyer Miles            800-327-2881
Northwest               Frequent Flyer Miles            800-435-9696
Northwest               Reservations                    612-726-1234
Northwest               Reservations (Dom)              800-225-2525
Northwest               Reservations (Itl)              800-447-4747
Northwest Airlines      Complaints and Compliments      612-726-2046
Northwest Airlines      Flight Information              800-225-2525
Northwest Airlines      Flight Information              800-441-1818
Now Voyager, Inc.       Courier (NY)                    212-431-1616
Ntnl Fraud Info Center  Suspicious Travel Offers        800-876-7060
OAG FlightCall          Flight Information              900-786-8686 
OAG Flightdisk          Flight Information              708-574-6565 fax
OAG Flightdisk          Flight Information              800-323-3537
OAG Pocket Flight Guide Flight Information              800-DIAL-OAG
(342-5624)
Olympic Airways         Reservations                    800-223-1226
Overseas Tours          Consolidator                    800-878-8718 
Overseas Travel Advntr  Free Tips                       800-873-5628
Passenger's Choice      Consolidator                    800-666-1026
Passport Services       US State Department             202-647-0518
Philippine Airlines     Reservations                    800-IFLY-PAL
(435-9725)
Polish Air-Lot          Reservations                    800-223-0593
Price Club Travel       Commission Rebater              800-800-8505
Prodigy                 Online CRS                      800-822-6922
Quantas Airways         Reservations                    800-227-4500
Royal Jordanian         Reservations                    800-223-0470
SAS Scandinavian Air    Reservations                    800-221-2350
SKY BUS                 Reservations                    800-755-9287
STA Travel              Consolidator                    800-777-0112
Sabena                  Reservations                    800-955-2000
Saudia Arabian Airlines Reservations                    800-472-8342
Singapore Airlines      Reservations                    800-742-3333
Southwest               Reservations                    800-531-5601
Southwest               Reservations                    800-IFLY-SWA
(435-9792)
Southwest Airlines      Complaints and Compliments      214-904-4000
Sunline Express Holidays  Consolidator                  800-786-5463
Swissair                Reservations                    800-221-4750
TAP Air Portugal        Reservations                    800-221-7370
TNT Chicago (?)         Courier (Chicago)               312-453-7300
TNT San Fransisco       Courier (San Francisco)         415-692-9600
TWA                     Complaints and Compliments      914-242-3172
TWA                     Frequent Flyer Miles            800-221-2000
TWA                     Frequent Flyer Miles            800-325-4815
TWA                     Reservations                    404-522-5738
TWA                     Reservations                    800-221-2000
Thai Airways            Reservations                    800-426-5204
Travac                  Consolidator                    800-872-8800
Travel Avenue           Commission Rebater              800-333-3335
Travel Bargains         Bargain Travel Agency           800-872-8385
Trvl Industry of Am.    Anon Tips about Crimes          800-474-8477
US Dept of Trans.       Airline Performance Statistics  202-366-2220
US Dept of Transprttn   Travel Advisory Number          800-221-0673
US State Department     General Information             202-647-4000/5225
USAir                   Complaints and Compliments      703-892-7020 
USAir                   Frequent Flyer Miles (itl awrd) 800-442-2784 
USAir                   Frequent Flyer Miles (srvc ctr) 800-872-4738 
USAir                   Reservations                    412-922-7500
USAir                   Reservations (Dom)              800-428-4322
USAir                   Reservations (Itl)              800-622-1015 
USAir Flight Info       Flight Information              800-943-5436
UniTravel, St. Louis    Consolidator                    800-325-2222
United                  Flight Information              800-824-6200
United                  Frequent Flyer Miles            800-421-4655
United                  Reservations                    312-825-2525
United                  Reservations (Dom)              800-241-6522 
United                  Reservations (Itl)              800-538-2929 
United Airlines         Complaints and Compliments      312-952-7843  
Varig                   Reservations                    800-468-2744
Virgin Atlantic         Reservations                    800-862-8621
Visa Services           US State Department             202-663-1225
World Courier           Courier (NY)                    718-978-9400

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-9]  IRS Rules Change

A recent IRS ruling allows companies to deduct the cost of lodging and
meals as a business expense when an employee stays over a Saturday
night in order to get a cheaper airfare, even if no business is
conducted on that day. The company does not have to report the 
room and meals expenses as income to the employee. 

As of January 1, 1994, the deduction for business lodgings and meals
goes down to 50% (from 80%).

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-10] Airline Antitrust Litigation

Note: The deadline for claims was June 1, 1993 (postmark). They should
have acknowledged receipt of your claim by mid-September, 1993.  If
you did not receive a postcard by September 12, 1993, or have any
other questions, write to Airline Antitrust Administration, PO Box 66,
National Park, NJ 08063-0066. Please do not call the court. (If you
didn't submit a claim by the deadline, it's too late.)

It will take at least a year for them to distribute the certificates
because of the length of time required to process the over 4 million
claims received. They hope to start sending out vouchers in the fall
of 1994. If your address has changed in the meantime, send a
postcard to the Airline Antitrust Administration address above.

If you flew on American, Continental, Delta, Midway, Northwest, Pan Am, TWA,
United, or USAir (domestic flights only) between January 1, 1988, and
June 30, 1992 from one of the following airports
   Atlanta        Baltimore         Boston
   Charlotte      Chicago (O'Hare)  Chicago (Midway)
   Cincinnati     Cleveland         Dallas/FW
   Dayton         Denver            Detroit
   Houston (IAH)  Indianapolis      Kansas City
   Los Angeles    Memphis           Miami
   Mpls/St Pl     Nashville         Newark
   New York (JFK) New York (LGA)    Orlando FL
   Philadelphia   Pittsburgh        Raleigh/Durham
   St. Louis      Salt Lake City    San Francisco
   San Jose       Syracuse          Washington (National)
   Washington (Dulles)
you are probably eligible for part of the $364 million antitrust
settlement. This settlement is in response to a suit charging that
they conspired to fix prices through a computerized reservation
system. If you write to

   Airline Antitrust Litigation
   P.O. Box 209
   Philadelphia, PA 19107-9711

they will send you a claim form and instructions.  You can also call
them at 1-800-854-7264. (An alternate address is PO Box 267,
Pennsauken, NJ 08110.) 

If you've taken at least one eligible trip, you will get a $100
voucher good for travel on either Northwest Airlines only, or on 
the other airlines (the restrictions on the vouchers differ, see
below). You choose which kind of vouchers you prefer, subject to
availability. 

If you've taken at least 5 round trips or 10 one-way trips (or some
combination), you will receive $250 in vouchers.

If you've taken more flights, you can file additional documentation
with your claim, and receive vouchers for 10% of the actual amount
spent.

This is a gross oversimplification of the terms of the settlement. If
more than 2,689,840 claim forms are submitted, the base $100 amount
will be reduced. If the total payout exceeds $364 million, the program ends.

Certificates may be used only as partial payment toward a ticket; they
may not exceed the price of the ticket.

The vouchers have the following restrictions on the price of the
ticket for which they may be used:

         Northwest Vouchers
      =====================================
      Voucher Amount   Ticket Price
      =====================================
       $25             $100-200
       $50             $201-300
       $75             $301-400
      $100             $401-500
      $125             $501-750
      $150             $751-1000
      $200            $1000-

       Other Airline Vouchers
      ===========================================
      Voucher Amount   Ticket Price (min)
      ===========================================
       $10              $50
       $25             $250
       $50             $500
       $75             $750
      $100            $1000
      $125            $1250
      $150            $1500

The first $100 in vouchers may be used immediately upon receipt. Of
the rest of the vouchers, half may be used immediately and half after
6 months. Vouchers are valid for a period of 2 years. Tickets
purchased using the vouchers are good for one year from the date of
purchase. Vouchers may not be combined with any other special offer.
Only you and your immediate family may use the vouchers unless you
designate a different recipient when filing your claim. Vouchers are
for use when purchasing tickets directly from the airlines, and may
not be used when purchasing tickets from a travel agent. Vouchers may
be used only for purchasing round trip tickets for travel within the
continental US (Hawaii and Alaska are excluded, except for residents
of those states). There are blackout dates during which the vouchers
may not be used. Tickets purchased using the vouchers will receive
frequent flyer miles. 

----------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: [4-11] Miscellaneous Notes

   The largest travel agency in the US is Thomas Cook Travel.

   Keep in mind that travel agents, ticket agents, and gate attendants
are people, and if you're nice to them, they may be able to bend the
rules.  Be honest and tell them what you're trying to do, and they
will often be nice to you in turn. The same thing goes with airport
staff and flight attendants -- ask for help, don't demand it.

   Unpaid reservations are often cancelled by the airline 24 or 48
hours in advance of the flight, just after midnight. So if you want to
book a flight that is already full (e.g., changing your return flight
in the middle of the holiday season), try calling the airline
reservation number at 12:30 am. Note that the time zone matters here
-- you have to call after midnight in *their* time zone. This trick
won't always work, since the flight in question might have no
cancellations.  If it works, you'll have to pay for the ticket by
credit card, or, if trying to change your flight, have all the flight
information in front of you (including your ticket) and pay for the
change by credit card. After midnight is also the best time to get the
seat assignments you prefer.

   When giving your name to your travel agent, be sure to spell it the
same way as on you passport.  Many airline reservation systems don't
allow name changes on a reservation, so if you don't get it right the
first time, the agent may be forced to cancel and reissue the
reservation. If space on that flight is tight, they may not be able to
reissue the reservation under a different name. (Airlines do this to
prevent agents from using dummy names to lock in reservations for
cheap fares and changing the names later when they have a real person
to sell the ticket to.) For domestic flights this isn't as much of a
problem, but when traveling overseas, they like the name on the ticket
to match the name on the passport.

   Seat assignment on most airlines starts 3 weeks in advance of the
flight (some are 30 days). No seat assignments on Southwest and
shuttle flights. Northwest allows advance seat selection 30 days prior
to the flight. Continental and Delta allow seat selection 60 days
prior to the date of the flight.

   Non-refundable, non-changeable, non-transferable tickets are
the default; you might have to pay more to have a transferable ticket.
But then you might be able to sell half your ticket, and thereby
recoup some of your costs. (This only works on domestic flights, where
you don't need to show a passport.)

   Bargain seats are almost always limited, so start looking
early and be flexible with your times and dates.

   January, February, September and October are the slack travel
months; ticket prices will be cheapest around then.

   Because of the way airlines price tickets, it is sometimes cheaper
to buy a ticket from point A to point C making a mid-trip stop in
point B (i.e., two tickets A-to-B and B-to-C) than it is to buy a
ticket direct from point A to point B. Note, however, that if you do
this your luggage should be carryons, since the airline usually checks
the luggage direct to the ultimate destination. Also, some airlines
will cancel your entire ticket if you skip one leg of the trip. (For
instance, if you discard the B-to-C part of a round-trip ticket from A
to C through B, you may find the tickets for your return flight
cancelled by the airline.)

   Most airlines have a rule requiring you to show up AT THE GATE 15
or 20 minutes before flight time, or they will release your seat.
That's 20 minutes according to the watch of the gate agent -- give
yourself 10 minutes to spare. If you have your ticket and you're late
(e.g., 30 minutes or less to flight time, and there are long lines at
the main ticket counter), go directly to the gate. Baggage can always
be checked at the gate. But if your ticket needs changes or has to be
picked up, you can't go directly to the gate. If your flight is
leaving very soon and there's a long line, ask the people ahead of you
if you can cut in front of them (explaining why). Most people will let
you.

   Airports notorious for heavy traffic and air-traffic-control
snafus: Hartsfield Airport in Atlanta, Logan Airport in Boston, O'Hare
in Chicago, Stapleton in Denver, JFK in New York, and San Francisco
International. 

   If you don't like delays, fly earlier in the day. A flight that
leaves early in the morning (before 8 am) often uses an airplane that
was at the airport the previous night, and so is already prepped and
ready to go. A flight that leaves in the afternoon uses an airplane
that started its day in another city, and hence is more likely to
suffer from delays (especially if it was delayed on one of its
previous flight segments). 

   The safest seats in a plane are often over the wings in the exit
row (extra reinforcement).

Aisle seats are better than window seats because:
   1.  You can get up and move around without having to climb over
       other people.
   2.  There is more legroom (window seats aren't as wide, because
       they must fit into the curve of the plane).
   3.  You'll get off the plane faster, and have easy access to the
       overhead compartments.
Window seats are better than aisle seats because:
   1.  You have a view, when it isn't cloudy.
Few people like middle seats.

Reward for Crime Tips: The Travel Industry Association of America and
Crime Stoppers International will pay cash rewards of up to $1,000 for
anonymous tips about crimes against travelers (including US and
foreign citizens on business and pleasure trips). To make a report,
call 1-800-474-8477.
     
If there's a promotion on airline A, you prefer to fly on airline B
(e.g., you're a frequent flyer on airline B), but airline B doesn't
have a similar promotion, you might be able to negotiate with airline B.
Try calling up airline B, state the terms of airline A's offer, and
say that if they match it, you'll buy the tickets right then and
there, otherwise you're going with airline A. This will sometimes work
quite well.

Carry-on bags: 21" x 14" x 9" is the official size, and 2 is the usual
limit. If the flight isn't full, you can usually get away with
slightly bigger bags. If they see you struggling with your bags, or
you're carrying far too many bags, or you ask if your bag is ok,
they'll probably ask you to check the bag at the gate. Purses usually
don't count towards the number of bags limit (depends on the purse of
course -- there are some mammoth purses out there). If you're carrying
non-checkable items (e.g., computers or electronics), they'll probably
let you carry them on. If your bag is extremely heavy, DO NOT put it
in the overhead bin -- the latches aren't very strong, and having a 40
pound bag fall on your head during a flight isn't pleasant.

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