AIRFARE ROBBERY

[Shaw]

Well, I have been a devout Delta customer since SAA quit flying the JNB route several years ago just looking at June airfares as I am leaving June 2027 to get a ballpark of current rates.... YIKES, I know fuel has gone up but it hasn't doubled or tripled like the airfare has. I've always been against flying anyone else but damn that savings would pay for damn near a Buffalo.

 

[375Fox]

I’m not sure what you are looking at. I put in August dates because I think most hunters would book flights at least 90 days out. They came up as $3000. The furthest delta will allow me to put in dates is April. They came up as $2200. I typically spent $1500-$1800 on that flight. Prices are up but not tripled.

 

[Tanks]

When I last checked Delta was over $20K for business for my dates.

 

[SETH RINGER]

FLYING BACK AND FORTH FROM COSTA RICA TO FL. USED TO BE CHEAP, IT'S UP 2-1/2X DUE TO FUEL AND SPIRIT GOING UNDER.

 

[Rare Breed]

Well, I have been a devout Delta customer since SAA quit flying the JNB route several years ago just looking at June airfares as I am leaving June 2027 to get a ballpark of current rates.... YIKES, I know fuel has gone up but it hasn't doubled or tripled like the airfare has. I've always been against flying anyone else but damn that savings would pay for damn near a Buffalo.

Agree. While I have always with few exceptions gone with Delta strictly due to save hours not pain, they are just crazy now. When I looked up Qatar they were literally half the price of Delta...yes 33 hours with layover versus 15 hours no lay over but for the money savings and service of Qatar I would go with them over Delta at this time.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

When I last checked Delta was over $20K for business for my dates.

Most businesses don't really care what they pay. It's a tax write-off. So Delta doesn't care how much they charge. The market for us unwashed masses, which are the bulk of the seats on the plane, can be more of competitive. I booked my flights for August last month and the fares had gone up significantly but not as much as I expected. It was far from shocking. Of course, the longer this aimless horse shit goes on in the Middle East, the more fares are bound to increase. Also, if you've been following the news you'd see several bargain airlines have folded up in the last couple of weeks. I would be surprised if South African Airlines doesn't go belly-up again. When competition disappears, fares will go up ... because they can.

Of bigger concern to me is ebola. Controlling travel during the COVID pandemic should have been a wakeup call but I'm not sure what was learned. Controlling travelers from Asia wasn't initiated until too late during COVID. We will see what happens this time. It will not surprise me if the govt here doesn't shutdown travel from Africa altogether by August. COVID was bad news ... ebola is a potential deadly disaster. No doubt about it.

 

[TTundra]

Delta has gone crazy. When I booked my Zim flights for August the below is what I first received. Qatar economy was $1300, Delta $2900. Delta first was $19,000

For comparison, Emirates business class which we ended up going with was $6,000, premium economy $2,400.

We booked 140 days out

 

[Sideshow]

Yes if Ebola gets a foothold things may get very spicy!

 

[375Fox]

Delta has gone crazy. When I booked my Zim flights for August the below is what I first received. Qatar economy was $1300, Delta $2900. Delta first was $19,000

For comparison, Emirates business class which we ended up going with was $6,000, premium economy $2,400.

We booked 140 days out
View attachment 767070

I’m not sure that’s so much delta going crazy as Qatar and Emirates being cheap to pull business back.

 

[Rare Breed]

Agree. While I have always with few exceptions gone with Delta strictly due to save hours not pain, they are just crazy now. When I looked up Qatar they were literally half the price of Delta...yes 33 hours with layover versus 15 hours no lay over but for the money savings and service of Qatar I would go with them over Delta at this time.

Just thinking why would Qatar be so much less at this time and it has to be demand down due to Iran situation so my guess is they are trying to drive demand

 

[TTundra]

I’m not sure that’s so much delta going crazy as Qatar and Emirates being cheap to pull business back.

Not so sure on that. Here was Ethiopian also quite a bit cheaper. I believe Swiss, Turkish, and even British airways were also cheaper in our searches. Delta is certainly substantially higher than they used to be on similar routes and their percentage increases far exceed other airlines.

They certainly have loyal customer base which cant be ignored.

 

[Rare Breed]

Remember it matters little if there is no real danger it is all about perception that drives reality and pricing

 

[45-70guy]

I just got back using delta, round trip was $1700 with the Insurance, and I flew first class the way home because they had an issue with my flight after the fact.
They asked if that was ok before I boarded lol.

 

[375Fox]

Not so sure on that. Here was Ethiopian also quite a bit cheaper. I believe Swiss, Turkish, and even British airways were also cheaper in our searches. Delta is certainly substantially higher than they used to be on similar routes and their percentage increases far exceed other airlines.

They certainly have loyal customer base which cant be ignored.

View attachment 767071

Delta has also never been the cheapest. It was the most direct and gun friendly. I do worry though if prices will ever go down?

 

[Hogpatrol]

Emirates next June was a little over 6k for business. It's about seven hours more than direct Newark or Atlanta. If you book the right flights, it's an A380 both legs instead of the triple seven Dubai to Joburg.

 

[TTundra]

Emirates next June was a little over 6k for business. It's about seven hours more than direct Newark or Atlanta. If you book the right flights, it's an A380 both legs instead of the triple seven Dubai to Joburg.

Emirates just revamped all the business class seats on their 777s. I've heard it's very nice and the videos they released looked good.

 

[csmcclain]

I'm seeing a rise, but nothing crazy. When booked our September flights, basic Delta was $1850. The same dates are now $2150, but that's 100 days out. Bumping out to November, they're $100 cheaper. I think the cheapest I've seen them was $1300 on a Black Friday sale in 2024 (normally $1650), but I've only been hunting Africa since 2024.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Emirates just revamped all the business class seats on their 777s. I've heard it's very nice and the videos they released looked good.

They had to do something. Business on that aircraft wasn't really business when you were sitting next to someone. I was lucky. There wasn't anyone in the adjacent seat.

 

[Huntforever]

Agree. While I have always with few exceptions gone with Delta strictly due to save hours not pain, they are just crazy now. When I looked up Qatar they were literally half the price of Delta...yes 33 hours with layover versus 15 hours no lay over but for the money savings and service of Qatar I would go with them over Delta at this time.

I booked with Qatar this July for that very reason reason and it’s actually a shorter flight with no layover to my final destination.

 

[TnKen]

I flew Delta last time but went with BA for my upcoming trip. I do have 5 hours more layover each way, but saved me 8k.