Travel News Today

When designing your own air travel plans and itinerary it is important to understand the different flight options that are available for you so that you may make the best decision and ease your travel experience.

Air travel can be relatively easy or extremely complicated all depending on how your itinerary is built. Basically, you want to travel from «Point A» to «Point B» however, getting straight from one to the other may not always be possible and «Point B» ends up becoming «Point D» because you have to travel to «Point B and C» first.

There are basically 3 types of flight options available;

1. Non-stop
2. Direct
3. Connecting

Non-stop Flights

This is the preferred itinerary of many air travellers. A non-stop flight begins at your point of origin and flies straight to your destination. Simply one take-off and one landing and you have arrived.

When travelling with pets or children this would be your preferred choice as clearly it would reduce your hassle and stress load. For unaccompanied minors or anyone that has any physical difficulties a non-stop flight is the best option as well for many air carriers this is the only option for unaccompanied minors.

For long haul flights, many travelers prefer a non-stop flight while others do prefer to break it up as they find it monotonous to stay on board an airplane for an extended period of time.

Direct Flights

Direct flights are often the only choice available for air travel, depending on airline schedules, routings, your point of origin and destination.

A direct flight operates on the same aircraft for the entire journey however, it will make either one or more stops along your journey. This is where I mentioned above that your «Point B» now becomes «Point D» because you have to make 2 stops along the way.

In most cases when you make one of these stops, usually called a «station stop» you will not even step off the airplane, as the stop is scheduled only to provide time for the deplaning of the passengers destined for that city and the boarding of new passengers.

A direct flight will take you longer to reaching your final destination however when no other options are available there is not much you can do about it. Bring along a good book and maybe a chocolate bar or two.

Connecting Flights

A connecting flight is similar to a direct flight as you will be making stops along your journey. The difference with a connecting flight is that you are then required to step off the aircraft at the stop and board a new aircraft to continue your journey.

If you continue your entire journey with the same airline you will only be responsible for yourself and your carry-on luggage making the change of aircraft. The airline will transfer your entire checked luggage to the new aircraft.

The time between your connecting flights is called a layover. Sometimes a layover can be as short as an hour and could be as long as a day.

The length of your layover can be caused by numerous factors. The 2 major factors that effect layover times are;

Minimum required connecting times. This is the minimum time required by the airline and the airport to ensure that your luggage is transferred from one aircraft to the next. For some airports that have more than one terminal or if you are continuing on to another country and may have to clear customs. This increases your «minimum required connecting time».

Aircraft availability due to scheduling. Quite simply the aircraft that you will be continuing on will not arrive until some time after your flight.

Connecting flights are unavoidable for most people that are traveling internationally as either they do not live in a city that has international air service or the airline that they are traveling with to their destination does not offer service from their home airport.

If you are traveling international and are switching airlines it is always advisable then to travel with code-share or partnering airlines so you only have to worry about checking in once. If you are able to check in once you will not have to worry about your checked luggage.

If you are continuing on with an airline that is not a code-share or partner airline you will be required to claim your luggage and check in again with that second airline. Again, affecting your «minimum required connecting time».

Do Not Try to Fool the System

When you are booking your own air travel with an online website, whether it be a general travel site or directly on the airline's own website do not try and fool the system to avoid lengthy layovers along your journey.

For example: You need to travel from Miami to Vancouver and when you visit your favourite airline's website you see that the only flight that is available on the dates you want to travel has a 2 hour layover in Dallas-Ft. Worth.

So you decide to look and see what flights are available from Dallas-Ft. Worth to Vancouver. Sure enough there is a flight that departs 30 minutes after your schedule arrival from Miami.

So you think why don't I just book that first flight from Miami to Dallas-Ft. Worth and then that second flight from Dallas-Ft. Worth to Vancouver?

This brings us back to «minimum required connecting time» and the importance of learning to accept this factor into your journey.

During that «30 minute» layover, you will have to step off that first airplane, go get your luggage from the baggage carousel, go back to the check in counters, check in for your second flight, go back through security screening and board your next flight.

Even if you are not traveling with checked luggage, 30 minutes is not enough time to check in again and go through security screening.

If the airline you are traveling with allows you to check in from home on the web you may quite easily check in from home for that second flight removing the need for you to actually leaving the secured airport area, assuming you are only traveling with carry-on luggage.

The system is still not beat, keep reading.

When you book that first option, which is called a legal connection, that requires a 2 hour layover in Dallas-Ft. Worth, you have met the «minimum required connecting time» and should you experience any delays along the way it would be the responsibility of the airline to ensure your luggage and you continued on your journey.

Do be aware that the responsibilities of the airline do change depending on the cause for the delay.

If you tried to fool the system by booking the flights separately and your first flight was delayed causing you to miss your second flight, you are on your own. You basically are a «no-show» as far as the airline is concerned. You missed your flight.

At this point you basically have 3 options available to you.

1. Negotiate with the airline to get on the next flight, which would most likely be the flight you would have been on if you had booked the legal connection.
2. Negotiate with the airline to go back home.
3. Change your plans and have some fun in Dallas-Ft. Worth

The airline industry is in constant evolution and while some may find it intimidating these constant changes are opening doors to our world and bringing us all closer together.

If you are uneasy about making your own air travel arrangements always ask an expert. Travel consultants and travel agents are professionals that have studied and immersed themselves in the travel industry just like any other accredited professional. Some travel professionals even specialize in certain aspects of travel.

They understand the system, how it works, why it works and what causes it not to work. They are there to offer their expertise so you can travel worry free.

Happy skies!

About the Author: Jason Miller has been working in the travel industry for over 10 years. He studied Travel Consulting Management and became an Independent Travel Consultant offering his expertise and passion for travel with numerous clients. Jason has been continuing his career in the travel industry as a Flight Attendant with a major North American airline as well as a contributing author at Your Global Travel News – http://www.yourglobaltravelnews.com

About Your Global Travel News Travel Briefs: We recognize that the world of travel ranges from simple trips to intricate vacations that are planned well in advance.

Each week Your Global Travel News publishes a «Travel Brief» to give you a little insight to some aspects of travel that you may never have thought of before or to offer you new ideas and solutions for the travel you do on a regular basis.

Our «Travel Briefs» offer everything from destination ideas to tips and tricks to making sure your travel experiences work much better for you.

Share your thoughts on our «Travel Briefs» and how they work or didn't work for you. We love hearing from you.