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Comment by ryanmarsh | Hacker News Reader

International flights are usually undersold.

I pick the middle seat. People will just opt for another row with a window or isle open and the middle seat open so they can have some space.

I often end up with a row to myself.

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Industry standard is to overbook economy by about 110% (there's a whole department dedicated to calculating this figure) and sometimes business class too.

Domestically, sure. The margins are better on international flights which might be why there tends to be more empty seats.

International flights are also more likely to be weight-restricted (like UA's TATL 757 operations).

Very much not "usual", possibly more likely for some sectors and times.

But flying ex-PER (and sometimes MEL, SYD) on Qantas (QF), Emirates (EK) and Cathay Pacific (CX) I rarely get flights with any more than a few empty middle seats.. and many times completely full including the flights on from their respective hubs to all sorts of US, European and Asian locations. Including mid week flights.

I did once get a super empty flight DXB-PER for some reason, it was mid week but I've never had that since, no idea why that one was so empty unless it was because it was right as they started their dual A380 service [I don't remember if that was true]? That was glorious had 4 seats to myself to stretch out and slept most of it. great for a 10h flight [I made about 10 20+ hours trips last year]

And SYD-DFW A380 on QF is weight limited so you get more empty middle seats there.

Possibly true for some sectors and times of week or something but airlines are hotly contested and they're just not going to be profitable flying planes with loadings not approaching capacity.

Really? What kind of international flights (src/dst/airline) have you seen being undersold the last five years or so? (I have seen so many flights that have been kinda the opposite. It was markedly different back in like 2008-2013.)

In mid-late April this year, I flew with Delta from Minneapolis to Tokyo Haneda and the flight was around 70% full in Economy - I was the only one in my row, and the row ahead was empty (by row I mean a set of three seats; I don't know the phrase for that).

The way back was pretty full though (middle of Golden Week for Japan). I must have been pretty lucky for the trip there!

Not parent, but Oman Air Paris to Muscat leg has been ~50% full at the most the last 3 times I took it. They're a top notch airline, flying Boeing 787, and their Muscat to final destination leg has always been full (same as the Muscat to Paris return flight), so I can't figure out why other than "I've been lucky" when the likes of Emirates/Etihad/Qatar Airways/... are full as can be.

Picture from my mid-May flight after closed doors: http://imgur.com/a/8ikMP

I just did Bangkok to Muscat on Oman and the fight was amazingly empty. We were on a 787 and I'd guess we had about a third to half the seats booked.

Combined with their decently low price, recent fleet and good services, they're really becoming one of my favorite airlines for EU->Asia. Now if only muscat airport could be a bit better ...

You do realise they won't be around for much longer if their flights are half-empty?

Given that it's owned by the Government of Oman, which is in charge of a "high income economy", it's probably pretty safe.

Last two years:

AT: CMN <-> BER, CMN <-> FRA

HV: AGA <-> AMS

KL: AMS -> CUR

AR: EZE -> MAD

I prefer to fly Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday and unless it's some holiday coming up at the destination I usually have the whole row for myself.

I don't think it is necessarily that they are undersold, although I am sure many are, but the rate at which people change or cancel flights is quite high and international flights are harder to oversell for various reasons.

LHR <-> IAD

IAH <-> LHR

IAH <-> DXB

DXB <-> PER

I flew DXB-PER return about 5 times in the last 12 months and only once did I get it undersold. And I have no idea why that happened. Wish I remember which trip it was now, have to see if I can find a photo of me laying down across 4 seats!

I've been on two Moscow-Tokyo flights (Aeroflot) that were less than one third full.

I've been on a couple of intercontinental flights using Etihad, Swissair, Lufthanza and British Airways between Europe and Asia, most of which were not fully filled for the long legs between major hubs.

I've also seen a few full flights, so I guess it depends on luck and the seasons.

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