5 ms·

I will be flying from east US to Germany this weekend. (Planned move and visa is running out so no choice). So far I'm the only person on the transatlantic plan

I will be flying from east US to Germany this weekend. (Planned move and visa is running out so no choice). So far I'm the only person on the transatlantic plane. Interestingly enough the local US-US flight seems to still have a lot of passengers on it (50ish%)

googlexa1 6y ago
How do you know that? Seatmap are not a reliable indicator - I made this mistake once to board a full flight to India (idea was to save on assigned seat) - many people booking will not be assigned a seat until checkin. The information your OTA or bespoke corporate travel agent has is no different to expertflyer, seatmap bad indicator and for availability you'll only see a max of 9 in each bucket..
- hannasanarion 6y ago
  Empty transatlantics aren't unheard-of. I was one of only two passengers on a Lufthansa MUC-EWR last year. It's better for them to run highly unprofitable flights than miss their contract obligations with big corporations that want a plane available to move people transatlantic on a day's notice.
  - pintxo 6y ago
    Also, you have a schedule and there is likely a return flight for which you need a plane in EWR in this instance.
- technicaldonut 6y ago
  I called the airline yesterday and they told me.
  - earthboundkid 6y ago
    Well, might as well recline the hell out of your seat then. :-)
orclev 6y ago
> Interestingly enough the local US-US flight seems to still have a lot of passengers on it (50ish%) That's probably a mix of people with critical jobs needing to travel, people having to move for a variety of reasons, and people listening to the ignorant and ignoring the advice to social distance.
- technicaldonut 6y ago
  Probably. As far as I can see from the airport website this is a regular flight leaving a few times a day. Right now it appears to fly once every other day.
rwmj 6y ago
In 2011 I took a flight to Boston which happened to be on the same day that William and Kate got married. I don't know if that was the reason, but the flight was almost empty (apparently under 30 passengers on a 737). It was annoying for a couple of reasons: Firstly they didn't upgrade anyone, even though first and business was basically empty. Secondly, the flight attendants were constantly badgering me in case I wanted something, when really what I wanted was a bigger seat and to be left alone. Anyway, good luck on your 1 passenger flight.
- bluGill 6y ago
  They can't upgrade people on an empty flight without upsetting the balance of the plane. I've been on flights where we didn't leave the gate until people downgraded so the front wasn't overfull. (I was the only person flying economy, first and economy plus was full so everybody was in front of the wings)
  - lordlimecat 6y ago
    I'm having trouble believing that the margins are so close that the position of a 200lb mass on a 68000 lb plane is a significant factor in anything. If true it would suggest that using the lavatories would be a significant event requiring coordination with the stewards and pilot.
    - quacked 6y ago
      30*150 = 4500 lb. There are cases of planes crashing because everyone rushed to the front or the back to avoid smoke. I know it's not the same as a commercial airliner, but I used to teach hang gliding on the beach and we'd sometimes get a little packed sand in the back of the keel (which is the name for the central bar that the wings were mirrored across). The total weight of the student plus the glider could get up to ~280 lb, and the amount of packed sand would be less than a pound or two, but the flight characteristics of the gliders would change drastically, to the point where we could barely get them in the air. As another commenter notes below, the few people moving around the cabin is less about control ability and safety than it is about fuel efficiency.
cgpcraig 6y ago
I've been wondering, do they upgrade you to the highest end seat on the plane then?
- technicaldonut 6y ago
  I have hopes, but it likely depends on the airline. Had an empty flight with Singapore Airlines right after Christmas and they didn't. This is British Airways so we'll see.
  - kerkeslager 6y ago
    If you ask, they'll almost always say yes. Something like, "Hey, I noticed the flight is mostly empty. Would it be possible for me to get a complimentary upgrade to one of the empty first class seats?"
    - gnulinux 6y ago
      They're losing millions of dollars every week. Will they still be eager to say yes?
      - pintxo 6y ago
        I wouldn't mind economy service if I still get the first class seating. So zero cost for them.
        technicaldonut 6y ago
        I'd take any kind of upgrade to be honest. Right now I'm in premium economy as for some reason the ticket was cheaper than economy.
      - technicaldonut 6y ago
        The question is if the stewardess cares as much as the airline. Realstically speaking there is virtually no difference in service for them. Assuming that I get the usual economy food and I'm really the only person on the flight.

googlexa1 6y ago

How do you know that? Seatmap are not a reliable indicator - I made this mistake once to board a full flight to India (idea was to save on assigned seat) - many people booking will not be assigned a seat until checkin. The information your OTA or bespoke corporate travel agent has is no different to expertflyer, seatmap bad indicator and for availability you'll only see a max of 9 in each bucket..

hannasanarion 6y ago
Empty transatlantics aren't unheard-of. I was one of only two passengers on a Lufthansa MUC-EWR last year. It's better for them to run highly unprofitable flights than miss their contract obligations with big corporations that want a plane available to move people transatlantic on a day's notice.
- pintxo 6y ago
  Also, you have a schedule and there is likely a return flight for which you need a plane in EWR in this instance.
technicaldonut 6y ago
I called the airline yesterday and they told me.
- earthboundkid 6y ago
  Well, might as well recline the hell out of your seat then. :-)

orclev 6y ago

> Interestingly enough the local US-US flight seems to still have a lot of passengers on it (50ish%) That's probably a mix of people with critical jobs needing to travel, people having to move for a variety of reasons, and people listening to the ignorant and ignoring the advice to social distance.

technicaldonut 6y ago
Probably. As far as I can see from the airport website this is a regular flight leaving a few times a day. Right now it appears to fly once every other day.

rwmj 6y ago

In 2011 I took a flight to Boston which happened to be on the same day that William and Kate got married. I don't know if that was the reason, but the flight was almost empty (apparently under 30 passengers on a 737). It was annoying for a couple of reasons: Firstly they didn't upgrade anyone, even though first and business was basically empty. Secondly, the flight attendants were constantly badgering me in case I wanted something, when really what I wanted was a bigger seat and to be left alone. Anyway, good luck on your 1 passenger flight.

bluGill 6y ago
They can't upgrade people on an empty flight without upsetting the balance of the plane. I've been on flights where we didn't leave the gate until people downgraded so the front wasn't overfull. (I was the only person flying economy, first and economy plus was full so everybody was in front of the wings)
- lordlimecat 6y ago
  I'm having trouble believing that the margins are so close that the position of a 200lb mass on a 68000 lb plane is a significant factor in anything. If true it would suggest that using the lavatories would be a significant event requiring coordination with the stewards and pilot.
  - quacked 6y ago
    30*150 = 4500 lb. There are cases of planes crashing because everyone rushed to the front or the back to avoid smoke. I know it's not the same as a commercial airliner, but I used to teach hang gliding on the beach and we'd sometimes get a little packed sand in the back of the keel (which is the name for the central bar that the wings were mirrored across). The total weight of the student plus the glider could get up to ~280 lb, and the amount of packed sand would be less than a pound or two, but the flight characteristics of the gliders would change drastically, to the point where we could barely get them in the air. As another commenter notes below, the few people moving around the cabin is less about control ability and safety than it is about fuel efficiency.

cgpcraig 6y ago

I've been wondering, do they upgrade you to the highest end seat on the plane then?

technicaldonut 6y ago
I have hopes, but it likely depends on the airline. Had an empty flight with Singapore Airlines right after Christmas and they didn't. This is British Airways so we'll see.
- kerkeslager 6y ago
  If you ask, they'll almost always say yes. Something like, "Hey, I noticed the flight is mostly empty. Would it be possible for me to get a complimentary upgrade to one of the empty first class seats?"
  - gnulinux 6y ago
    They're losing millions of dollars every week. Will they still be eager to say yes?
    - pintxo 6y ago
      I wouldn't mind economy service if I still get the first class seating. So zero cost for them.
      - technicaldonut 6y ago
        I'd take any kind of upgrade to be honest. Right now I'm in premium economy as for some reason the ticket was cheaper than economy.
    - technicaldonut 6y ago
      The question is if the stewardess cares as much as the airline. Realstically speaking there is virtually no difference in service for them. Assuming that I get the usual economy food and I'm really the only person on the flight.