“In its simplest form, a passenger purchases a ticket from city A to city B to city C but does not travel beyond city B,” according to the companies’ complaint. “‘Hidden City’ ticketing is strictly prohibited by most commercial airlines because of logistical and public-safety concerns.”
The above quote has been published in numerous articles pertaining to United Airlines Incorporated and Orbitz Worldwide LLC suing to prevent Skiplagged — an Internet web site for lower cost airfares founded by Aktarer Zaman — from helping consumers buy what the companies call improper “hidden city” airplane tickets which undercut their sales.
The case — called United Airlines, Inc. et al v. Zaman — was reportedly filed with the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on Monday, November 17, 2014.
I am not going to analyze what are the “public-safety concerns” associated with “hidden city” ticketing — which in and of itself is not illegal but is against the policies of many airlines — except for this very serious and real concern:
Passengers who engage in using hidden city ticketing almost always wind up losing a leg…
