American Airlines says it is just “simplifying the booking experience” but in reality is engaging in deception by conflating “main cabin” fares with “basic economy” fares in a way that reduces transparency.
American Airlines Obscures Economy Class Pricing On Website + App
When searching for a ticket on aa.com, you will now see two initial options: main or premium. For example, here’s a look at Los Angeles to Chicago:
Click through and you’ll find the two fare options. Note that “Main” starts at $280. Historically, “Main” is “regular” economy class cabin while “basic economy” is the more limited economy class product meant to compete with low-cost carriers that restrict advanced seating, changes, and earning elite status.
Click through, though, and you will see that “Main” is actually priced at $325 per person, with the $280 fare for basic economy. I agree with View From The Wing that this is akin to bait and switch!
Historically, AA separated basic economy from the Main cabin during the initial flight search results.
In defining the change, American Airlines argued this is about “simplifying” the booking experience:
Based on customer feedback, we’ve made strides in the last few months to simplify the booking experience on aa.com by grouping fares by cabin and then providing customers the option to click down to view details of various fare offerings in each cabin.
Our updated, more intuitive display shows first the options for Main Cabin or Premium Cabin, before then guiding the customer through each fare product within the respective cabin to provide more clarity to our customers on the type of fare they may choose to purchase, and the benefits that come with it.
This display ensures customers can comparison shop and choose the fare that makes the most sense for them based on their travel needs or benefits they may already receive through AAdvantage status.
I get where American Airlines is coming from and am not ready to simply reduce its display changes to deception. It’s true that AA calls its economy product “Main” and that basic economy would fall within the broader “Main” cabin.
Even so, particularly in terms of flight search results, “Main” has historically been associated with a specific product, distinct from basic economy. And you can see that because “Main” is still priced as a separate and more expensive product in the screenshot above.
I suppose the quickest way AA could fix this would be to relabel the broader fare category “economy” instead of “Main” but simple is not always better and certainly is not here. Instead, AA should display basic economy as a separate class category during the initial search results, as it has done for years.
CONCLUSION
American Airlines says it is simplifying its fare search results and making it easier for consumers to comparison shop. In reality, it is creating consumer confusion and forcing an extra click to understand what the fare truly is. It’s time for American Airlines to restore its old initial fare display.
