Some passengers do not notice much of a difference between charter and scheduled flights. However, these are two radically different ways to get by plane to the desired point in the world. One of the main features that many have heard about is that it is impossible to return tickets for charter flights. However, is it really so?
What is a charter flight
In order to understand the intricacies of the financial side of charter flights, you first need to understand what it is. So, a charter flight is a deliberate order by someone of a charter at a certain time on the right route. It is charter flights that usually transport schoolchildren to conferences, athletes to competitions, tourists to vacations, and so on. Since the main customers are large travel agencies, their example will better show all the subtleties of this business.
The main feature of a charter flight is the customer's risk. He pre-pays for seats on the plane and therefore pilots do not care how many people fly in the cabin - fifteen or one. Travel agencies, for example, usually order charters in bulk based on flight statistics. For this wholesale, airlines give discounts to travel agencies, which significantly reduces their financial costs.
The scheme is simple and straightforward - the tour operator reserves the plane for a certain time, concluding an agreement with the airline. Sometimes all charter tickets go to this travel agency, sometimes some of them are sold to smaller companies or individuals.
Most often, planes fly both charter and regular routes, bring tourists to the resort, and the previous group of vacationers is taken from it.
Features of charter flights for passengers
If everything is clear with travel agencies - charter flights give them both a guarantee that the plane will fly at the right time, and the risk that there will be no one to fly, then what are the benefits of the passenger?
Firstly, many resorts can only be reached by charter planes. For example, Antalya, Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh and most of the Greek islands only accept charter aircraft.
Secondly, it is beneficial. As it is already clear, travel agencies redeem tickets for a charter plane in bulk, and it makes no difference to the airline how many people fly in the cabin - after all, everything has been paid in advance. That is why situations often arise when the tour operator tries in some way to reimburse his expenses for an unprofitable order and sells tickets at a good discount. This means that a few days before the expected departure date, you can find cheap tickets on the website of any major travel agency or on the pages of companies that sell tickets for charter flights.
However, for the airline, regular flights have a clear advantage over charter ones. This means that if there are any problems in the schedule, then first of all regular flights will be sent, and only then - charter flights. And the arrival time is usually inconvenient for the passenger. In hotels, check-in usually takes place at 12-14 o'clock in the afternoon, and because of this, you can lose almost a whole day waiting.
Possibility of ticket refund
The most important question remains - can the tickets be returned? After all, no one is safe from the fact that the trip will have to be postponed for some time or return from the resort earlier than planned. If you've bought tickets for a scheduled flight, the answer is obvious - yes, of course. If you return your tickets in 24 hours, you won't lose anything at all.
However, the situation is different with charter flights. You conclude a contract not with a carrier (airline), but with a travel agency. And they usually indicate in contracts that tickets for a charter flight are non-refundable. Of course, this is beneficial for the tour operator and completely unprofitable for the passenger.
By the way, some foreign companies insure themselves in this way. This usually happens during ticket discounts.
