What is an Airline Consolidator ticket?

by David Tinney, Travel Agent & Author

Airline Consolidator

Consolidator airline tickets are a specific type of ticket and are available on most major airlines of the world. This type of airline ticket is usually for international travel but also can be purchased on a few US airlines for domestic travel. In general, flying on a consolidator ticket is the same as flying with a standard ticket, but much less expensive. This is possible because consolidators commit to buying a certain dollar volume of tickets from the airlines, and are therefore given low, contract prices by the airlines. These savings are passed on to you, the consumer.

Some people think they can get a cheaper ticket if they wait until the last minute, when "airlines sell off blocks of unsold seats" cheaply to consolidators, who sell them for whatever they can get. This is a misconception and is not true.

It is sometimes possible to get a cheap ticket on very short notice, but you rarely get a cheaper ticket than if you had planned ahead. If you wait until the last moment, it may be impossible to get a reasonable price, or even to find any available space at all on the day you prefer to fly.

Most travelers do not understand the way airline executives think. The facts are that on any given flight, there are a specific number of seats. As seats are sold there are fewer available and the airlines way of thinking is the few remaining seats are more valuable than when seats were plentiful. Basically, it is the law of supply and demand.

The airlines' historical figures for any given flight indicate that a certain percent of the seats will be empty. By allowing consolidators to sell those empty seats through a deep discount contract, the airlines increase the odds of that flight being full. No one actually knows the percent, that is a closely guarded secret of each airline. Some experts guess somewhere between 10%-20%.

Once the plane leaves the gate with any empty seats, it is lost revenue for the airline. The consolidators bear the burden and expense of the marketing costs of the "cheap seats", that is why the airlines' can afford to sell to the consolidators at such deep discounts.

Another misconception is that all the leftover seats at the last minute will be sold at whatever the airline can get for them. Not so. The airlines' allocate a certain number of seats to be sold on each flight via the consolidator contract. This allocation can be available right up until the day of the flight, but remember, the airline controls allocation, not the consolidator.

Flying a consolidator airline ticket, you can save between 10% - 70% or more off the airlines' published retail fares. During airfare sales, which are few and far between since 9/11, you might be able to get a cheaper ticket with a published fare, but that is not the normal case, particulary in spring and summer season.

Consolidator tickets usually do not impose all the restrictions that airlines have on advanced purchase fares. For example, you can fly into one city and depart from another. Saturday night stays are not always required, and your trip can last for more than 30 days.

Seven Differences of Consolidator Air Tickets

There are a several differences between standard and consolidator airline tickets which you should know about:

One, no prices will be printed on the ticket. Airlines don't want you to know how cheap they are willing to sell their tickets!

Two, if you change your plans and wish to change flights, or have your ticket endorsed and transferred to use on another airline, you may not be able to. Most airlines will not accept consolidator tickets issued on other airlines. However, if the airline cancels your flight, they are bound by law to accommadate you to another flight.

Three, sometimes you won't get frequent flier miles when flying with consolidator tickets, policies vary, so ask before you buy if frequent flyer points are an important issue to you.

Four, there is usually no advance purchase requirement on consolidator tickets, whereas practically all retail published fares will require a 7, 14 or 21 day advance purchase.

Five, you cannot purchase a consolidator ticket direct from an airline, you can only purchase it from a travel agency that sells consolidator airline tickets.

Six, many consolidator tickets can be canceled after purchase but before the travel date. It may have a penalty though. That's still better than the airline's retail fares, once purchased, you CANNOT cancel theirs for any reason.

Seven, Consolidator tickets have an entirely different set of restrictions. Here are some of the usual: (1)There are usually no advance purchase requirements. (2)They may be refundable with a penalty. (3)A different penalty amount for changes as compared to a regular ticket.

Most people consider the differences between a consolidator ticket and a retail ticket a small trade-off for the savings they enjoy with the consolidator ticket!

Make sure to find out the rules before you buy your ticket. Consolidator tickets (unlike many other inexpensive airline tickets) may be refundable with a penalty, be sure to ask. And when you fly with a consolidator ticket, you'll be able to get special meals and other benefits you would normally get with a higher priced ticket.