What’s A Positioning Flight? And How Can It Save Me Money?

Most people looking to travel abroad look for flights from their nearest Airport, they then choose the most convenient/cheapest option for their trip. Sound familiar? You may think this is the cheapest way to secure flights to your destination… it’s not! One of the ways you can cut costs is by using a positioning flight from your local Airport to a second hub and booking your main flights from there.

What’s a positioning flight?

Unfortunately, a lot of great deals are rarely offered to those flying from the UK. This is partly due to the high UK Air Passenger Duty charged for flights departing the UK, particularly flying in premium cabins such as Business Class! But also because the airline may also tailor prices to the market of the country of departure or there is increased competition on a route resulting in lower prices. So how do you take advantage of this? Simply book a flight from outside the UK to your destination and then book a separate ticket to your start point, this is known as your positioning flight.

What locations should I look from as my starting point?

Take a look at locations such as below when searching for your next flight and compare the price to the price you are offered for flying directly from your local airport.

• Prague
• Amsterdam
• Oslo
• Stockholm
• Gothenburg
• Bucharest
• Warsaw
• Inverness

For example, the cheapest business class flight return we found when writing this post from London – the Maldives on the 15/01/22 – 22/01/22 was £2274 with 1 stopover. If we search from Amsterdam – the Maldives on the same dates the cheapest was £1556 with 1 stopover. Roughly £700 per person cheaper! Now you’d of course have to factor in the cost of positioning flights but these are from just £44 per person (economy) on EasyJet depending on flight timings. Overall still a huge saving… think of what a £1,000 extra in the Maldives would allow you to do as a couple!

It sounds too good to be true!

Well, it isn’t without risk! Because you are required to book the flight from your local airport to your starting point & return separately you aren’t covered if anything goes wrong. For example, if you book Amsterdam – Maldives via Doha with Qatar Airways you would be covered if you missed the connecting flight in Doha. But if you lived in London and flew London – Amsterdam on EasyJet as your positioning flight before starting your journey you wouldn’t be covered if your flight was late and you missed your Qatar Airways flight. Whilst some airlines may be sympathetic to you missing your flight and will rebook you, you are at the mercy of their goodwill or your travel insurance!

Don’t forget as you are on separate tickets you’d need to go through immigration, collect any luggage and then recheck it in again before going through security.

How can I lower the risk of missing my flight?

1. Allow plenty of time. There is so much that could go wrong e.g. equipment failure, bad weather, long immigration queues, long wait for luggage & needing to change terminal etc. which could end up delaying you so you miss your flight it’s pivotal you allow enough time to catch your next flight. Airports/Airlines often publish Minimum Connection times (if you search on Google you’ll find them for your local Airport) we’d allow atleast TWO times the amount of time mentioned as they are designed for connecting flights rather than seperate tickets.
   
2. Travel with hand-luggage only. Don’t forget as you are on two different tickets you will need to allow time to go through immigration, collect your luggage & then check-in your luggage again before going through security. If you travel with hand-luggage only you can skip the waiting for luggage and rechecking it in saving valuable time.
   
3. Check-in online/on your phone. This will save you having to queue for a boarding pass (if it’s possible to check-in online of course.) By doing this rather than your deadline being check-in time at the desk it becomes last boarding call at the gate.

Is it worth booking a trip starting outside the UK with a positioning flight?

Booking long-haul trips in Business Class from outside the UK can be a great way to save money and even collect more tier points and miles. BUT always play it safe and allow plenty of time to catch your flight after your positioning flight arrives. Whilst if you are a single traveller or a couple you might find the sacrifices needed OK for a decent saving it’s unlikely you would feel the same with kids or a large group… there is so much more than could go wrong! Do you take any positioning flights? If so, what are your top tips to make sure you never miss the connection?