American Airlines Refuses to Change Unpopular Policy

Earlier this summer, America's three largest airlines – Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and American Airlines – were all exposed for a controversial pricing tactic, and it seems like American is sticking by it despite outrage.

Back in May, Kyle Potter, executive editor at Thrifty Traveler, discovered that Delta, United, and American were all charging significantly more for solo travelers than groups when purchasing the same tickets on the same flights.

The discovery quickly sparked outrage from customers and travel bloggers, leading  Delta to quietly update its fares, charging solo travelers the same as groups. United followed suit, but appears to have since changed its mind and reverted back to the controversial practice.

American, however, never adjusted its fares and has been consistently charging solo travelers more than groups or couples despite the outrage.

In fact, while both United and American are still charging more for solo travelers than couples or groups, an analysis from The Economist found that American embraces this practice to a far greater extent than United.

"American is deploying the technique much more enthusiastically than United. Whereas solo weekday travellers were charged at least 5% more on only 8% of United routes, that threshold was crossed on 57% of American routes. American appears to make use of the practice more aggressively on short trips and those where it does not compete with Southwest, a low-cost carrier," The Economist wrote.

American Airlines has never issued a public statement on the controversial policy, but it's clear that they aren't planning to make any changes to their fares despite the backlash.