Milan-Rome, why have flight prices skyrocketed? There are 56 different fares on an airplane – Corriere.it

The lucky ones paid 59.75 euros for an Ita Airways Milan Linate-Rome Fiumicino flight on Thursday 20 April (one way). The lowest price. The less fortunate, those who booked at the last minute because they were unable to take the train due to the railway inconvenience of central Italy, had to shell out 520.75 euros for the fifty minute journey. Always one way. In between, another fifty-four price ranges on the same route and for the same company (the only one offering the direct connection). what emerges from the analysis of the Courier on the tariff plan made available by Ita on the Milan-Rome route (and vice versa).

Revenue management

This segmentation is part of the revenue management policies of airline commercial departments. It’s not just a question of assigning a value to a seat or a small block of seats, but also of maximizing revenues, by introducing restrictions on the lowest prices or facilitations — such as free rebooking or lounge access — on the lowest tall. On Italian Linate-Fiumicino flights, the 56 price ranges are distributed over an average of 159 seats per flight operated: this means that the price is the same for less than three seats per trip.

The maneuvers

But sometimes Revenue management departments close down the lowest flight classes if they notice that there is demand on that route, hiding them from the booking systems and therefore from customers. If, for example, on some particular days, there is a significant event in Milan – the Formula 1 Italian Grand Prix, Design Week, fashion week – the demand for travel is high and therefore there is a greater propensity to spend more. Those who work in airlines explain that this could also have happened on April 20, immediately after the news of the railway blockade. Otherwise, if a particular flight does not sell at the desired rate, then action is taken by putting the cheapest seats up for sale, so as to ensure a satisfactory fill rate.

The two classes

Not only. Here it is then necessary to divide the seats in Economy from those in Business (which in Italy is called Superior for domestic flights). The extraction of the individual fares available on the Milan-Rome flight shows that the lowest fare in Economy is precisely 59.75 euros, while the highest (always in Economy) is 421.75 euros one way. In the first case, the limitations are different: no baggage in the hold (unless you pay extra), choosing a seat is not free, changes to reservations are subject to a fee, while if you miss your flight there is no refund.

Prices

The lowest price in the Superior class – usually the first 3-5 rows of seats, identical to the Economy but with the central position left empty – is 209.75 euros, going up to 520.75 euros. Taxes and surcharges included. The simple idea: whoever pays more generates a higher revenue for the carrier which recognizes some additional services such as the possibility of checking in a trolley in the hold, being able to change flights for free, choosing where to sit – on the basis of availability — without spending additional money.

Seats available

This is why there are (on average) a maximum of two seats on an Ita Linate-Fiumicino flight sold for 59.75 euros (the fare code bears the acronym Foplgn1 indecipherable to most). So when these seats are booked, the next user sees the price immediately rise to 69.75 euros, the price assigned for a single seat. Then the outlay for fourth place jumps to 82.75 euros, for fifth place to 89.75 euros and so on. For this reason, in general, those who book earlier pay less.

The restrictions

Almost all airlines then calibrate the fares for return flights based on timetables and destinations. For example: those who book a Linate-Fiumicino journey departing from Milan in the morning and returning the same day in the late afternoon pay on average much more than those who return to the North after a few days. How come? Because this combination of morning-afternoon flight falls within the case of business travel, with white-collar workers who travel to do business and with a ticket (even Economy) paid either by one’s own company or by the customer.