What is bumping? Airlines always do their very best to see that your flight is as smooth as possible. You should know, however, that there is a chance you may be bumped from your flight if it is overbooked.
What is bumping and when does it happen?
"If you get bumped, it basically means the flight is overbooked and they cannot accommodate all the passengers who are holding tickets," says Milena Garita, Reservations Sales Representative with Continental Airlines.
"If you get bumped, it basically means the flight is overbooked and they cannot accommodate all the passengers who are holding tickets," says Milena Garita, Reservations Sales Representative with Continental Airlines.
While it doesn't happen often, it can happen on flights that are in higher demand. The reason has to do with the airline wanting all of the flights to be as full as possible.
"This is known as an over-show situation," says Garita. "All airlines overbook. This happens because of what is known as the no-show factor."
What is the no-show factor?
"All flights have a certain no-show factor," says Garita. "This means that over the period of time that airline has been doing that particular flight, there is a certain amount of people that do not show up on a regular basis."
The same is applied in reverse as well.
"If a flight has a low no-show factor, that means historically speaking those passengers always show up," explains Garita.
Rest assured there is a science behind which flights get overbooked and those that do not. Garita says it is not done randomly and is usually pretty accurate.
"Flights are tracked over a large number of years. All airlines overbook because there are certain flights that always have no-shows," Garita explains.
Where the flight originates, where it will land, and the time of day will all be considered when overbooking a flight.
Garita offers the following example: "A flight at six in the morning may have a high no-show factor. A flight at nine in the morning has a very low no-show factor. Therefore, the six AM flight is more likely to be overbooked than the nine AM flight."
What flights are least likely to be overbooked?
"Anything between nine and one in the afternoon will normally be going out with full seats," says Garita. "Those would not normally be overbooked or if they are, it's by a very small number."
There are employees hired by an airline specifically to keep track of flight histories and to decide which flights should be overbooked and which should not. Airlines also track by city.
"One example might be Las Vegas," says Garita. "This is a city that never sleeps. A flight leaving Las Vegas at one AM will most likely be full, whereas a flight leaving a city like Miami might not be. While people in Vegas tend to be up at all hours, by the very nature of the city, Miami is just not the same."
For some cities, it's simply a matter of timing.
"San Diego, if I am not mistaken, has a law that says an airplane can't take off during a certain time," says Garita. They may be less likely to have no-shows because take off and landing times are limited.
If you want to avoid being the one getting bumped on an over-booked flight, it is strongly suggested that you arrive early for your flight.
"They will look at what time each passenger checked in at the ticket counter," says Garita. "If it shows that you didn't get to the ticket counter at the right time, your seat might get given away because you may not have enough time to get to your gate. If you arrive late, you may be the one to get bumped."
When you do get bumped, the airline will do everything they can to help you reach your destination.
