As airlines perfect more computer models and algorithms to track our travels, and our travel behavior, beware of growing evidence of price discrimination. Airlines charging more if a trip spans a weekend, or singling out business travelers who fly solo, or coming up with a formula of our pain point, how much each of us might be willing to pay.
The Economist magazine tracked this disturbing development on one-way economy fares, looking at 19,000 prices across 3,200 routes. And solo travelers were charged more on 57 percent of American Airlines routes.
And a two-traveler round trip on the same routes? That cost one third less than solo travelers paid. My advice: compare both Delta and United flights on similar routes, or where any of these airlines competes with Southwest or Frontier.