Perils of flying budget airlines

Back in the early days of aviation, flying was prohibitively expensive. It was enough of an event that people would dress up for it. I imagine gourmet meals and fancy wines were the order of the day on your average flight. Back then, flying was prestigious.

In the 70s, Southwest Airlines pioneered a model of air travel that sought to aggressively drive down costs and pass down the savings to the consumer. Thus the world’s first low cost carrier (LCC) was born.

This model would later be replicated around the world with varying levels of success. Kenya with it’s fairly advanced aviation industry is also represented.

Budget airlines have a couple of strategies to keep down costs. They operate one type of aircraft with a high seat density. Pilots, cabin crew and engineers only have to undergo training on one aeroplane type. Aside from the reduced training costs, the airline has increased scheduling flexibility.

Labour costs account for up to 40 per cent of a traditional airline’s costs. Their no-frills counterparts encourage staff to take on dual roles, such as cabin crew also cleaning the aircraft.

Self-service is also utilised where possible with customers having to check in online. Purchasing tickets via the company website also cuts out expensive agent fees.

The planes tend to fly to secondary airports which charge less landing and handling fees. They also allow for quick turnarounds since a plane only makes money when it is in the air.

LCCs also aggressively charge for everything. Seat allocations, any luggage larger than a backpack, a sandwich or even water will dent your wallet. The processing fee of paying by credit card can even be passed on to the consumer.

Yield management systems allow LCCs to charge variable ticket prices to optimise loads. Some European operations have been known to charge less than a dollar for very early bookings.

All this has led to an explosion of air travel in the developed world. By charging people for only what they use, it could be argued that it is even a fairer system of travel.

However, LCCs have developed a deserved reputation for hidden fees and poor customer service. Failure to print a boarding pass, overweight or oddly shaped luggage can attract extra charges.

Since the flights operate point to point, even if you miss your onward connection on the same carrier due to delays, you will have to buy another ticket. Not to mention that a flight to Nairobi might deposit you at an airport in Machakos.

If you are travelling for leisure, have no luggage, have plenty of free time to arrive at the airport early, have a love for reading dense terms and conditions documents and are computer literate, then discount airlines will serve you well.

If you don’t fit the above, you are probably better off on a normal airline. You may even end up paying less than you would at a budget airline.

Dr Ondieki is a pilot with an international airline