Travelers rake in $24,000 airfare for $1,300 in major airline mistake
Enthusiastic travelers have snagged first-class flights for thousands of dollars cheaper due to an airfare error, with one vacationer fetching a $24,000 ticket for just $1,300.
The first-class flights on All Nippon Airways, one of Japan’s largest airlines, were sold at a heavily discounted economy-class price due to a currency conversion error, Bloomberg reports.
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One lucky traveler snagged a first-class round-trip trip from Jakarta to the Caribbean via Tokyo and New York for just $1,300 ($890).
The 14,500km round trip normally costs A$24,300 ($16,300) for first class – at least 18 times the economy bill.
Other premium fares in the A$15,500 ($10,400) and A$12,400 ($8,300) range were listed for A$820 ($550) and A$520 ($350).
Most of the tickets were for trips from Jakarta to Japan and then to New York and back, reports Bloomberg.
Other flights included various destinations in Southeast Asia such as Singapore and Bali.
Several excited customers took to social media to share news of their mis-selling success.
“Crazy, like a dream. My friend got the ticket for himself,” said one person.
“Many (people) received these prices (including me) in the hope that we could fly business class with economy fares,” added another.
A spokesman for the airline told Bloomberg that the error was caused by a currency conversion issue on its Vietnamese website.
It said ANA was investigating “the cause of the bug and the magnitude of its damage.”
Whether the tickets are valid, the airline said, a final decision has yet to be made.
And with that decision not expected until the end of the month, the discounted tickets will apply to anyone flying before then.
