Asian LCC Airlines playing December collusion

[ethernet]

The LCC airlines in Asia are NOT looking cheap and year on year have increased prices quite a LOT. Some even claim $50 of 'Taxes' when they were $15 or so last year.

Can anyone speculate if December ticket blocks will be released - because they know what capacity is over booking predictions?

Intra Asia December flights in particular seem singled out for blackouts/nil discounting, and the usual 2 for 1's did not arrive this year.

My hunch is affordable USA bound travel snagged a big bite of outbounds, and to-asia capacity is huge/grown, and NZ - and that there are plenty of unsold to asia 'quarantined' seats. History shows 6 December is the usual oopps we goofed date - a good choice for them, as it is too late for me to pounce.

Queuing theory and operations research, I will smile if their gambles have resulted in some disastrous load factors on midweek flights, as appears the case - by the canceled /bumping going on. The revenue enhancement models for oz outbound - are waaay different this year.

 

[dajop]

The LCC airlines in Asia are NOT looking cheap and year on year have increased prices quite a LOT. Some even claim $50 of 'Taxes' when they were $15 or so last year.

For some time ex-SIN (weekend) travel on LCC's has not been particularly cheap, you need to book months in advance. In fact, for $400 SGD on EK, it has been better to fly to MEL than pay $250-$300 to fly to BKK on AK/TR/JQ (in fact I was recently looking at a TR flight BKK-SIN on Sun night in Dec, the TR flight was about $70 SGD more than the SQ flight at departing BKK at the same time. Go figure. I know which I'd prefer....)

 

[FL360]

I redeem my australia -> asia full service flights one year ahead for this xmas, as usual,

for the return one way leg I have to fly LCCs, given no award seats available and full service one way is way too expensive...

I booked JQ SIN=>DRW=>SYD coming back early January, i have paid about $450 AUD all inclusive... This was still the price until June this year, and it gradually increases, now all Jetaver seats are gone and only JetFlex available for about $1,200 ! :shock:

The cheapest price I have saw for these periods was when Jetstar upgrade their reservation system, I saw $180 :shock: back in Feb, but it was probably in error....

Book early is the key for Xmas travel....

However sometimes MH may have cheap one way fares KUL=>AUS one month before....but these fares are very hard to catch !

 

[auriga]

Peak season equals high prices, usually.

 

[ethernet]

High season expected.
Is there any web page where you can see the load factor of each international flight flown?

The whole point of LCC's is to be consistantly cheap, not more that some 'regulars'. Collusion: There was airline chatter about 'holding the line - before claimed GFC recovery'. Seems some success.

But if USA or Europe can snared for 12/1300 odd, the shorter hop should not be $1000 for what is a charter ticket and the shi**st non-changable ticket conditions. A 'package' can be cheaper in high season.

The differences for this year:
1) Fewer sales offerered for Dec, elusive tixs in June.
2) Dramatic leg differences - Asia to .au cheap, 3X price going out
3) Perth is having an abundance of sales
4) Tixs to Perth not very gettable - no incentive to detour - too hard.
5) Massive next 2 weeks style seat dumping (not seen much last year)
6) Feb sales stated now, skipping over midweek dec sales
7) Oh, and higher 'taxes'.
8) Rise in unannounced, cancelled flights.
9) GFC caused any buyout/merger deals to vanish.

I don't know if they have figured in sticker shock, and how pax will react when they see Feb is 3 or more X cheaper that high season flights. Oh well, see how this poker is played out.

 

[NM]

Is there any web page where you can see the load factor of each international flight flown?

No. That information would be extremely commercially sensitive and the airlines will only make public that information that is required to be reported by law. So at best you will find references to average load factors over a month, year to date and comparisons with previous years in their reports to the relevant stock exchanges etc.