Get Military Discount On Flights

Members of the military and their families are often given discounts when they need to travel. It’s a way of thanking them for their service to the country. Each airline has its own policy on military discounts and how much fares are reduced. Many members of the military check with their favorite airlines, or shop around for the best discounts. Get military discounts on flights by determining how much flexibility you have in your travel plans and conducting an Internet search for the best military rate.

Steps

Finding Military Discounts

1. Search for military discounts on commercial airlines. Each airline offers a different discount program for military personnel. In order to take advantage of these discounts and find the airline with the best deal, you have to search each airline individually, either by phone or by using a special search engine tool.
   • A search engine specifically designed for military members looking for discount travel can be found at Militarytravel.com. This will save you the time it would take to contact each airline individually.
   • The discount is usually in a percentage off your ticket price, or as a dollars-off amount.
2. Enroll in airline programs. To get some military discounts, individual airlines will require you to create an account. These accounts are usually free, but they help the airline keep track of who is accessing which discounts. Not all airlines require you to sign up for programs, however, so pay attention when you are viewing the discount or talking on the phone to an airline representative.
   • For example, United Airlines offers a Veterans Advantage Program. Members of the military and their families get a 5 percent discount on flights as well as other benefits. You need to enroll to get savings.
   • Keep in mind that most of these discounts and programs have restrictions about both where you board the plane and its final destination, usually that you have to board in the US.
3. Combine discounts. Once you have narrowed down which airlines offer military discounts and how much you are likely to receive off with each one, you can ask if you can combine discounts. For example, if you are a member of a frequent flyer program, you can inquire if your military discount would interfere with use of those points.
   • You can also try to find tickets that are on sale, such as destination packages, and see if you can tack on the military discount.
4. Ask a travel agent. Talk to a travel agent who specializes in military travel. A travel agent will know about discounts that are available and can find you the most affordable flights available. Keep in mind, however, that a travel agent does charge a fee for the time they spend researching.
   • Travel agents are more worthwhile when you need a trip to be set up with an itinerary and booked rooms and restaurants, especially if you are flying with a large group.

Deciding When to Use Space A Flights

1. Find out what Space A seats are. Space Available Flights, or Space A flights, are also known as “military hops” because you are “hopping” on a military flight when you are on leave. Active and retired members of the military can fly for free when there are empty seats available on a flight. Their dependents are also eligible.
2. Be willing to do a lot of searching to find Space A seats. Since September 11, 2001, and the Twin Tower attacks, Space A seats have become difficult to locate even for military personnel. As such, you have to do a lot of digging and calling around to find one.
   • There is no online search engine dedicated to finding Space A flights, so it might be matter of who you know and keeping an ear out.
3. Find out what airlines offer Space A flights. Since Space A seats are for Department of Defense airplanes (DoD) only, no commercial airlines offer them. You can find schedules of flights by contacting individual military bases to help you find Space A flights, but to keep America safe in the face of increased terrorist activity, flight schedules are no longer published online.
4. Determine if you have time to wait for Space A seats. As the name suggests, you have to wait for a seat to become available to sit in a Space A seat. This means that you must remain extremely flexible once you find a flight.
   • You may need to camp out at the airport or military base for a while.
5. Plan to fly at unpopular travel times. To aid your efforts in finding a Space A seat, aim to fly at unpopular travel times. For example, flights leaving at 5:30 a.m. are a better bet than those that depart at 10:00 a.m. because mid-morning is a much more comfortable time to travel than having to get up early or stay up very late.

Finding Other Discounts

1. Use frequent flyer miles. You also want to consider that finding your own discounts can be cheaper than using military discounts. If an airline will only allow you to use one or the other, and the discount that is not military-based is better, you should use the alternative. For example, some airlines require that you only use frequent flyer miles if you aren’t combining other discounts.
   • If you have a lot of frequent flyer miles, can’t find a Space A seat, and the military discount is low, it is probably in your best interest to use the miles.
2. Compare military and non-military discounts. Most airlines offer commercial flight sales at different times of year, such as vacation packages or rates that go down during off-peak hours. Shop around and compare these deals with the military discounts that you have access to. You may not be able to combine the discounts, but it is wise to make sure you use the one that saves you more money.
   • Before going with one discount or the other, make sure that you can’t combine them by calling the airline directly, or reviewing the FAQ page on their website.
3. Find government fares. There is another type of discount that goes unadvertised with most airlines: government fares. These fares area negotiated by the government to leverage cheaper seats for government personnel. These seats are usually for business use only.
   • These seats are often available to military personnel on leave.
   • These seats do not charge you for changing the flight times.
   • Keep in mind that usually there is only one airline that has these seats for each individual route.

Tips

• Remember that the cheapest travel might be found outside of a military discount. For example, the 5 percent savings on United Airlines is great, but you can do an Internet search on a discount travel site like Expedia, Kayak, Hotwire, or Priceline and find fares that are even lower than the price quotes you get directly from commercial airlines with your military discount.

Warnings

• For Space A flights, you may not receive the same customer service you would get on a commercial airplane. You may also have to endure uncomfortable situations like long waiting and sleeping in airports to get these seats.

Related Articles

• Make a Hostel Group Booking with Grouppingo.com

Sources and Citations

See also

• Know if Airline Miles Are Worth Buying
• Buy Cheap Airline Tickets
• Buy Airline Tickets with Credit Card Reward Miles
• Buy Bulk Airline Tickets
• Purchase Consolidator Airline Tickets
• Book an Airline Ticket
• Find a Cheap Flight from the US to London
• Get Cheap Flights
• Buy Airline Tickets
• Get an Upgrade to First Class

Read more ...