Major Airlines Dropping Some Advance Fares

Major U.S. air carriers are dropping a popular category of discount, so-called “junk fare” used mainly by business travelers in an industry-wide “restructuring” of discount fare programs, airline officials said Friday.

Continental Airlines took the initiative last Friday, eliminating one-way advance purchase fares on available seats, but other big carriers, including American and Northwest, quickly followed suit.

Most of the carriers’ cuts take effect next Tuesday, officials said.

“We are in the middle of a fare restructuring program,” said Ned Walker, a spokesman for Houston-based Continental. “You will see some fares decrease and others increase.”

Walker said the Continental fares eliminated generally required seven-day advance purchase and carried a cancellation penalty. These fares made up less than 5% of tickets purchased, he said.

Northwest also was eliminating its one-way discount “super-coach” fares, which require a three-, seven- or 14-day advance purchase, depending on the market, said spokesman Bob Gibbons.

Northwest followed suit “because we have a higher cost structure, and if we can still offer a competitive fare but at a slightly higher rate, that’s better for us because it can help recoup our higher costs,” Gibbons said.

Gibbons said he believes Continental is being matched by Delta and United as well.

On Wednesday, Texas-based American Airlines announced it was shedding its “junk fares” on Tuesday.