The cost of flying standby depends on two things: the flight itself, and who you are to the airline.
Most likely, however, there will be a nominal charge of between $25 and $100 to fly standby.
High-mile frequent flyers are more likely to get free standby flights because they are the
customers who already spend a lot of money. Additionally, if your flight is canceled or overbooked you might
receive a free standby flight as compensation.
Standby flights are the leftover seats on a plane that haven’t been filled by travel demand.
Since airlines are working harder than ever to ensure every seat is filled, flying standby has become
much more difficult over the years. As a result, discount flight deals are more popular than ever
as travelers seek out ways to save money on last-minute flights. Still, you might be able to find
available seats if paying customers and airline personnel don’t snag them first.
Overbooking Makes Flying Standby a Risky Venture
One of the ways airlines prevent empty seats is by simply selling more tickets than the plane
can accommodate. More often than not, a few passengers don’t show up the day of the flight,
and the flight leaves perfectly full. Of course, sometimes everyone on the flight shows up, and the airline will request that anyone
who doesn’t mind taking another flight at a reduced fare to voluntarily give up their seats. This
all goes toward avoiding the financial loss of empty seats on flights going to standby
passengers, or to no one at all.
When Should I Try to Get Standby Seats?
The best time to fly standby is when other people aren’t flying. This means weekdays, not near
any holidays, and at very early or very late times in the day. Your best bet is to show up very
early on a weekday, and have patience. In addition, unless the airline has overbooked or
delayed your flight, you should expect to pay a double-digit standby fee.
Even though standby flight availability is lower than ever, you can still make it work if you know
how to work the system. It will likely cost you a small sum of money, but if you don’t mind
uncertainty in travel, standby is a great way to fly
