[TheMole]

That line about half-full flights struck me as ridiculous also. I've flown about 8 times in the past 18 months (Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Seattle, San Jose, Los Angeles) and every plane was packed. In fact, it seems clear that if they aren't full they get cancelled, and so travellers in places like San Jose can get stuck there for another day or two until there are enough passengers to fill up a plane to Seattle or wherever it is they're trying to go.

[technochick99]

Actually, I think the better way for the writer to phrase it as that seat usage versus supply is at 50%. If you have 10 planes flying fully sold out, and then demand drops by half, the airlines respond by cutting the number of flights to 5. Thus, the flights you are on seem just as crowded to you as always, but the airlines see the real numbers.