Just an after-thought ... maybe what this debate lacks is realism ... a prismatic, defining event ... something after which things are never again the same. DEATH. Now, someone in your family has just died ... get on the horn and make the call. Get some real dualism going ... you're sad for the bereavement, but my god, it's the economy that must be protected. Suspend that grief and take the fare, and thank them ever so much, and yes, you understand, it's either documentation homebound, or you're out at 25,000 feet. Of course, the issue is clear: you need a healthy air industry for next year's vacation travel, and what would happen if all these poor, sad slobs suddenly showed up and pleaded for a break in the fare ... you know, on FF grounds. Afterward, lets hear some after-thoughts from the hard-eyed among us ... you know, the ones who confuse the B-L with eternity. Maybe this is outrageous, but what if the airlines tacked on a $1 death tax to every ticket and then gave free seats to immediate family? Heck, that's the way we build runways, and add radar, and new airports. Who would complain ... I mean, you never know when the phone will ring. Ciao

Oooh, L. That was downright spooky. Seriously, I only understand about 15% of your posts, but that one came through loud and clear. Thanks.

Cindy - I'm neither sympathetic to blanket discounts for seniors (collectively the wealthiest age group in the country) or for children (your ability to procreate should not qualify you for automatic discounts). <BR> <BR>And based on other threads in this forum (ie. should i lie about my childs age to get on the rides at disney land cheaper,)I suspect that if airlines provided drastic discounts for the "bereaved", the number of so called bereaved people in this country would skyrocket. I just might become bereaved every time I needed or wanted to travel.

xx-Last time I flew on bereavment I had to have documentation from the funeral home for the airlines, so you see x it would be impossible for people to fake it. BTW, people like you should be kept away from the rest of us.

Lowest reasonable fare -- sure. Discounted after that. No way. Get your hands back in your own pockets. Would you also like to bump people who booked ahead of you? <BR>

Hey, being at 15% is really spooky ... I can do an 11 or 12 on a good day, and my mom's personal best is 17, but she's my mom, and you know moms. But what's really, really spooky is XXX ... can you imagine someone countering an argument for fare decency with a fear of feigned, widespread bereavement? It would almost be worthwhile getting to the airport early ... just to get a seat near the counter to hear all the sad tales with straight faces. Ciao

But anyone traveling on a cheap fare can already be bumped in favor of someone who is a fave of the airline. So what else is new? Also, sooner or later, all of us will be able to get a real bereavement fare, so it will all work out even-Steven in the "end." (Get it? The "end?" That was for L.)

Some of us haven't done our abc's ... ashes to ashes, dust to dust ... and it's onboard as carry-on into the overhead. Just a demeaning final trip through x-ray. No tick, no ticket, and that's a fair. And we can wait for the sales, even if it takes an eternity. Ciao

I don't think the airlines would go broke offering people the lowest fare when someone has had a death in the family. If they could afford to let the guy next to me fly to wherever, USA for some bargain fare because they booked ahead then they ought to be able to afford to offer that same fare to a last minute traveler in this type of dire circumstances. We're not talking about people who just didn't plan ahead. We're talking about people who's father or mother (or other loved one) just died. I harldy think the airlines would be flooded by mourners looking for great deals. I simply think their fare should be the same rate as the the lowest ticketed fare already booked for that flight. It seems like the right thing to do.

I feel that the bereavement fares are priced very fairly considering what they give you. You can get same-day flights on flights that are already full. A few years ago I had to use one from Oakland to Minneapolis when my grandmother was very ill. At the time Delta didn't require any documentation. Sure I paid a little over $600 BUT I flew the next morning and they even managed to make my mother (coming from WA) and my connection in Salt Lake at the same time...(I had just had a baby a week earlier) I know we had people bumped from those flights, they were FULL. When we called to reschedule our return flight after she passed away there were no problems or additional fees, the reservation agent even inquired about my grandmother from out of nowhere! The airlines don't have to do this, that $600 was a heck of a lot cheaper than a full fare bought the night before for a full flight. Sure I might have found a cheaper fare WITH restrictions and additional fees to change the return date if I scoured the Web, but at a time like this, who has the time and energy to do that? Asking for 1/2 off the lowest fare is just down right tacky.

Getting an unrestricted ticket on very short notice at half the going rate is a very significant accommodation on the part of the airline, IMHO. It's a very different rate for the same conditions of service as those that would normally generate the highest possible revenue -- and it is based entirely on WHY you are flying. (Is that an issue for the airline, really?) It sounds like a reasonable compromise on the part of the airline, albeit not necessarily what many would consider a "good deal" in terms of a travel value.

I guess there could be two kinds of bereavement fares. The first kind is the "funeral" fare. Someone dies, you need to go there in the next day or so, and you can come back on a pre-determined date. Usually no need to bump someone, because I can fly anytime of day, so long as get there for the funeral, etc. I think this is what most people require. <BR> <BR>The other kind is the "grave illness" fare, where you have all of the flexibility some folks mentioned, and a higher potential for abuse. <BR> <BR>When I have needed bereavement fares, the flexibility part is unimportant because I know when I have to be there and for how long. No reason to charge a whopping fare if I'm able to accept all of the flexibility restrictions that normally accompany an advance purchase ticket. <BR> <BR>The airlines need to revisit this issue.

I'm amazed at the number of people who only see the world revolving around them, their circumstances, their problems.....to heck with everyone else, MY problems take precedent! <BR>The airline business is a business. They don't owe bereaved people jack squat. If they want to offer reduced fares as a goodwill gesture, good for them. And no, they shouldn't misrepresent these fares (I'm not aware that ANY airline ever advertises a bereavement policy in plain view, though). <BR>Biggest problem with the USA at present: too many whiny people who think they're ENTITLED to whatever it is that they need at the moment, but don't want to EARN or work for what they get. <BR>Sad.

Each year businesses donate lots of money to charities, comunity events, the arts, research for diseases... You more cynical posters probably think it's for the "tax write-off." I happen to think that it's because businesses are run by people that are in a position to do good by donating money. It feels good to be generous and feel like you can do something to make a difference. Maybe you think that the CEO's should all give themselves a big raise instead.

No disrespect to our elders, but OldGrandDad is aptly named. Is this the voice of business, or just an echo out of the Great Depression? Either way, hope we don't have too many of his kind in charge. Ciao

Dead is dead, right? Sooo, what's the rush? Is the deceased going to haunt you because you didn't prostrate yourself in front of their coffin? Grandma's silver might go to your cousin instead of you? The dead don't know you're there. Ah, but cousin xxx does, and IS keeping count, right? I want to be remembered by those who love me, rather than have someone call attendance at my funeral. <BR> <BR>Emergency flights for a loved one in another city who has had an accident or is seriously ill makes sense. Help them heal, or say your good-byes. Time can be of the essence then. <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR> <BR>

Well, blackheart, I guess you aren't familiar with the Jewish tradition of burying the dead within 24 hours. And some of us actually want to be there to say a final good-bye to that loved one.

Ah, but the point of a funeral (and the only fun part, by the way), is the gathering of distant friends and family. So you go not for the dead but for the living.

What an amazing collection of sharks, who are too evil to be intelligent! Mean-spirited, greedy, intolerant, non-compassionate, yes, absolutely black-hearted! Add coward for venting all your misanthropic vitriol here anonymously and continuously. XXX you can be counted on to trash whatever you touch. There's medication for that, but you apparently don't think you owe it to society to be anything other than sheer poison. <BR> <BR>The first responsibility of an airline is not to the shareholders but to the public. They are not banks nor holding companies, even though they are trying to act that way. Their mission is to fly planes with people in them safely, and making enough money to keep doing that doesn't mean that investors' interests take precedence over public interests like safety. <BR> <BR>As to bereavement fares, I think it's a measure of what we as a society think is important. If the seat would otherwise be empty, why not charge the lowest recent fare, which is at least not $.00? If there is a demand for the seat, I still think a compassionate discount is merited. And as to what airlines stand to gain or lose here? <BR> <BR>You'd better believe I'll always remember a sweet American Airlines agent who gave me the promotional fare when my father died, telling me I didn't want to get into the mess with documentation, etc. <BR> <BR>And you'd better believe I'll never forget when Midway put us through all kinds of hoops getting doctor's and funeral director's notes to pay $400 instead of $800 when my father-in-law got suddenly ill and died. <BR> <BR>It's a moment in your life when everything is magnified, and good or bad treatment on such occasions becomes the subject of discussion with lots of other people. <BR> <BR>

But you still don't get it Winsley. <BR>The airline is running a BUSINESS. <BR>That business owes the public NOTHING. <BR>Nothing more than the plumber who works on your home or the gas station which gouges you for gas. Nothing more, nothing less. <BR>Why do you people think airlines are like government agencies which are beholden to their constituents? <BR>Why do you think an airline owes you special favors if you're bereaved? <BR> <BR>Does AMTRAK owe you something? <BR>How about Greyhound? <BR>The taxi cab driver should cut you a break because you're bereaved? <BR>Huh?