can i just use the return leg of a flight?

[loltolhurst]

Hi,

My chum needs to get back from peru but all the one way flights cost a fortune. yet i can get a cheap return flight from here.

Question is if i book this and they are not on the outward flight will the return flight be valid?

Thanks

[sherman]

Could you not get him a return flight starting in Peru?

[harry010]

I would have thought so... most return flights I book are actually an outbound and inward flight bundled together... ie you choose the times/flights of the journeys separately

[loltolhurst]

sherman said:

Could you not get him a return flight starting in Peru?

seems to cost a fortune from here

[sherman]

Try here
http://www.cheapflights.co.uk/flights/Lima/Gatwick...

[sneijder]

On most el cheapo tickets, miss the first leg and the second is cancelled. They're cheap for a reason.

Pretty standard with most airlines, which airline is it ?

[Amateurish]

sneijder said:

On most el cheapo tickets, miss the first leg and the second is cancelled. They're cheap for a reason.

Pretty standard with most airlines, which airline is it ?

+1 I believe the return leg will get cancelled.

[Amateurish]

harry010 said:

I would have thought so... most return flights I book are actually an outbound and inward flight bundled together... ie you choose the times/flights of the journeys separately

This is true with low-cost airlines, but not your more traditional, long haul airlines.

[loltolhurst]

sneijder said:

On most el cheapo tickets, miss the first leg and the second is cancelled. They're cheap for a reason.

Pretty standard with most airlines, which airline is it ?

Tam whoever they are. Thats a bit crap if you rang them up would they keep it open?

[mike325112]

Not directly related but when i looked at Peru a few years back it was cheap to fly with Iberia via spain. Circa £200 if I remember correctly.

[shoggoth1]

Amateurish said:

harry010 said:

I would have thought so... most return flights I book are actually an outbound and inward flight bundled together... ie you choose the times/flights of the journeys separately

This is true with low-cost airlines, but not your more traditional, long haul airlines.

I admit it's been well over 10 years since I worked for British Airways but I'm fairly certain that they would cancel the return leg if the outbound was not used. Precisely to stop people from getting cheap return deals when they only wanted one way (which never really had deals on and could be quite a bit more).

[v15ben]

When I worked for STA all return flights were sold on the basis if you didn't turn up for the outbound, the whole thing was cancelled. Not sure if you could blag something directly with the airline/at the airport but it sounds unlikely.

[Galsia]

Sill question but why not just book a return ticket but starting from Peru and 'returning' from the UK? Then obviously don't use the return...

[shakotan]

Galsia said:

Sill question but why not just book a return ticket but starting from Peru and 'returning' from the UK? Then obviously don't use the return...

Wouldn't normally be a 'sill' question, if it hadn't already been posted in the thread...

loltolhurst said:

sherman said:

Could you not get him a return flight starting in Peru?

seems to cost a fortune from here

[theboymoon]

loltolhurst said:

Hi,

My chum needs to get back from peru but all the one way flights cost a fortune. yet i can get a cheap return flight from here.

Question is if i book this and they are not on the outward flight will the return flight be valid?

Thanks

This question comes up quite regularly.

The answer depends entirely on the airline.

Some will honour the return (like Easyjet) because the ticket is in-effect 2 singles, some will not let you on the return if you don't make the outbound (like BA). Sorry to not be more helpful.

[arfur daley]

send your wife to peru and bring your mate in from peru.

[sneijder]

IIRC TAM have just joined or have been for a while, in Star Alliance. This puts them in the 'Proper Airline' bracket, and therefore it's a given they'll cancel it.

[Dr Jekyll]

shoggoth1 said:

I admit it's been well over 10 years since I worked for British Airways but I'm fairly certain that they would cancel the return leg if the outbound was not used. Precisely to stop people from getting cheap return deals when they only wanted one way (which never really had deals on and could be quite a bit more).

What happened if someone only used the outbound leg of a return? Where they chased for the difference?

[theboymoon]

Dr Jekyll said:

shoggoth1 said:

I admit it's been well over 10 years since I worked for British Airways but I'm fairly certain that they would cancel the return leg if the outbound was not used. Precisely to stop people from getting cheap return deals when they only wanted one way (which never really had deals on and could be quite a bit more).

What happened if someone only used the outbound leg of a return? Where they chased for the difference?

BA will cancel the return if you do not use the out bound.

If someone used just the outbound leg of a return they would not be chased for any difference. It's rare (if ever) for a single to 'out' to cost more than the return using the same out flight. Also when that person did not check in on the return BA would no doubt re-sell it to a standby so they win anyway.

The booking algorythm things must be very difficult maths!

[BigBen]

Dr Jekyll said:

shoggoth1 said:

I admit it's been well over 10 years since I worked for British Airways but I'm fairly certain that they would cancel the return leg if the outbound was not used. Precisely to stop people from getting cheap return deals when they only wanted one way (which never really had deals on and could be quite a bit more).

What happened if someone only used the outbound leg of a return? Where they chased for the difference?

Last year I missed a pre booked miles flight and needed to get back from Cape Town, it was way cheaper to get a return than one way so did it that way. Did not take the return and have not been chased yet.