Factors and their variables affecting tiered pricing include the cost of jet fuel per barrel. Overall, tiered pricing helps airlines to stay competitive and drives down the costs of airline tickets for individual passengers. Business class ( or first class) passengers do not typically get these pricing advantages because they do not have the luxury of bargaining down prices.
Three main tiers determine an airline ticket's cost from moment to moment. The first depends on how much the airline customer is willing or able to pay, otherwise known as "haggling." The second involves the selling of airline fares in bulk or volume to consolidators or vendors of packaged travel. The third is consumer class pricing, where seniors and students may get discounted fares because of social status.
With multi-tiered pricing fluctuations (also known as "price discrimination"), customers who travel the most (frequent flyers or customer loyalty members) may not always get the best deals available. Prices that are not "written in stone" allow travel by those who otherwise might not be able to do so at a price in their own budget range.
