By Updesh Kapur/Doha


It’s that time of the year. The summer holiday season is coming to an end.
Planes full of passengers are arriving into Hamad International Airport from far-flung places across the world.
Most passengers on inbound flights with national carrier Qatar Airways typically transit through Doha.
But at this time of the year, more than the norm arrive back in their homeland and adopted home of Qatar. Other carriers are too flying full with returning passengers to Qatar.
For Qataris and expats alike, it’s a return to routine – back home, back to work and back to school.
Roads are beginning to get busy once again. Shops are filling up with regular customers.
Retailers have beaming smiles as trade picks up.
For airlines in the Gulf, it’s one of the busiest seasons, flying passengers back to the Middle East and primarily to Europe where the summer break for most is also coming to an end.
But peak seasons are not always a happy time for travellers. In fact, the busier the season, the more stressful it becomes for passengers and airlines alike.
Despite holding confirmed bookings, passengers may end up being left behind at the check-in counter because flights have been overbooked.
Overbooking is a common practice in the airline industry worldwide where carriers will accept a few additional reservations beyond the aircraft’s seating capacity.
All airlines overbook to ensure they have a full flight. They want to fill seats that could be left empty by passengers who don’t show up for their flight or fail to cancel their reservations prior to departure.
We all know the outcome of missing a flight having been held up in snarling traffic or left our home or hotel without essential travel documents. Yours truly has been in this situation a couple of times!
It’s for these reasons that overbooking is a common practice. But it is also aimed at earning airlines more revenue.
Anyone trying to book a seat on an already full flight will still be able to secure a reservation – but at a price.
Internet booking engines will inevitably show there are limited seats available on a busy flight, but at a fare much higher – and at times extortionately high – than what you think you should be paying.
Airlines make good money in such a scenario.
Before leaving India earlier this week for my return flight to Doha, which incidentally was confirmed and priced heavily being peak season, I went on a stroll around check-in desks of various airlines at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport.
India’s international airports are at their busiest at this time of the year.
Queues were jam-packed for the early morning departures of European and Gulf airlines to their respective home countries.
The stressful faces of passengers were clear to see.
On one hand there were airline staff desperately trying to get onto flights with their children, all travelling on heavily subsidised 10% tickets, otherwise known in the industry as ID90s.
There were some I knew who returned to the airport on two consecutive early mornings for departures back to Qatar, only to be told the flights were full. They are of course given less priority than full-fare paying passengers.
But for them, it’s not a pleasant experience, giving up sleep for two nights on the trot with kids in tow to get to the airport early and be sent back home packing.
On the other hand, there were bona fide passengers having paid, perhaps well in advance, for seats to their final destination. At a couple of counters of different airlines, I could see and hear their arguments with check-in staff after being “bumped” off overbooked flights.
A free night’s accommodation courtesy of airlines is no consolation, nor would compensation for denied boarding. However, an overbooked plane can be seen as a mixed blessing for those with time on their hands who can afford the inconvenience of staying on an extra night or two at someone else’s expense and rack up free meal coupons and complimentary flight vouchers.
Check-in staff avoid passenger commotion by trying to convince a select-few passengers to forfeit their seats rather than deciding randomly to ‘bump off’ travellers on an overbooked aircraft.
Much worse is seeing First or Business Class passengers being downgraded at the height of the travel season. This is not a pleasant sight.
Such cases often see those forking out heavy bucks for the privilege of travelling in the premium cabins, take complaints straight to top management and threaten to boycott the airline for future travel as a result of a bad experience.
At this time of the year, passengers just want to return to their point of origin without fuss and hassle and get back to their daily routines.
A bad experience at the airport just wipes out the memories of a good holiday or indeed a good business trip.
It’s easy not to understand the airline’s predicament, but this is a fact of life in the industry. Overbooking is a practice that will not disappear.  
It’s a tough call for airlines. Like it or not, airline check-staff are in the front line and often face the wrath of passengers and are forced to give explanations.
To avoid such scenarios in future, whichever class of travel, here are a few handy tips to ensure you get on the flight of your choice.
Arrive at the airport as early as possible, not the two hours typically stipulated by the airline.
Where flight frequency on a popular route is limited to perhaps daily, it is prudent to take such action.
If there is a connecting flight involved to the final destination, missing one flight can hamper the onward journey.   
At busy departure times, such as early evening and early morning – particularly on Thursdays and Sundays respectively – at the beginning and end of the weekend here in the Gulf, it is advisable to take extra measures.
Give yourself plenty of time at the airport to avoid stress. Checking-in online at home or office before leaving for the airport will ease the pressure knowing you have a printed boarding pass in your hand or one sent to your mobile device.
Cutting it fine and arriving just before the flight closes at check-in is not advisable at all. We have all been in that situation, but this is where you are most vulnerable and no element of arguing will get you anywhere.
The last passengers to check-in for a flight are typically the ones who are bumped off against their will – or involuntarily in airline lingo.
With one holiday season coming to an end, another one is just weeks away.
Many are already booking their breaks for the Eid al-Adha holidays – and the tips outlined should come in handy.
However, if you’re planning to travel between now and then, the world’s yours.
Flight bargains are extensive from September 1 onwards during the off–peak travel season.
Airlines are desperate to fill seats that would otherwise go empty. The offers will be plentiful. Two-for-one fares, bonus frequent flier miles and extra baggage allowance to name a few.
Whether online, through a travel agent, or an airline’s reservation office, booking a flight over the next few weeks will seem like a treasure chest of bargains galore.
And the chances of being bumped off during the off peak travel season are slim indeed.
Happy shopping and happy flying!

♦ Updesh Kapur is a PR & communications professional, columnist, aviation, hospitality, travel analyst, and writer on sports and the Bollywood film industry. He can be followed on twitter @updeshkapur