Airline Companies & Expensive Flights

One thing I have noticed over and over again is the market’s ability to constantly play mind games with the consumers. Living in the state of Florida definitely has its benefits. I always get to vacation and go home to a warm place in the summer, spring break, Christmas break, or any other time I get the chance to get a break from school. One of the most negative aspects is that there is a 15 hour distance from my home with my family and where I attend college. With that kind of distance I cannot drive because it is too far for me to do alone, which means I am always paying for plane tickets any time I want to go home (which gets extremely expensive). Most people who attend Ohio State University have the convenience to drive just a couple hours, while only having to worry about the cost of plane tickets when they are traveling for some kind of occasion. Within the flight industry, the airlines are very competitive, trying to get as many travelers as possible for their own company. With that being said, I have learned that the airline market is very elastic. This means that the quantity demanded responds strongly to the changes in price. People, such as myself, are always looking at websites that offer alternative/ cheaper prices on airfare, as flight costs are constantly changing. Whether the market is full of busy costumers or not, the prices will adjust to the scenario that benefits the airline industry. The more people that are willing to fly, always leads to high prices in flights because then the airlines know people are willing to pay the ridiculous costs. The reason flights are elastic is because there are many different airline companies, who will raise or lower their prices within the market to benefit their company. Airline agencies are usually aware of what other airlines are doing because if they raise their own prices too high, revenue will fall. Fortunately people have the opportunity to chose an alternative substitute (airline agency) if they are not happy with the prices their usual airline provider offers.