=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SF Gate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/chronicle/archive/2003/05= /18/TR167389.DTL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Sunday, May 18, 2003 (SF Chronicle) Airlines miss the boat on honoring our troops Ed Perkins Members of the military -- or family members of people serving in the military -- might be interested in "Blue Star Moms," an organization of mothers of service personnel that's pushing the major airlines to offer easily available airfare deals to military personnel and their families. Surprisingly, with all the fuss about "honoring the troops," the airlines seem to be ignoring this important and high-visibility market. I hope the Blue Star Moms can persuade a few airlines to offer some attractive deals. In the meantime, I'll offer some suggestions on how best to arrange a trip to visit family members in the armed services near their duty stations, or to have them visit you. The point of departure for Blue Star Moms' program is the fact that neither military personnel nor their families always have the full 14- or 21-day advance notice of leave, port arrival or other meeting opportunities to take advantage of the lowest fares the airlines offer. As a result, they're forced to pay higher business-travel fares if they want a quick trip home or a visit from the home folks. When I did an Internet search of the main U.S. airlines recently, only US Airways said it offers special fares for military personnel who are on leave or recently discharged, as well as their dependents. The US Airways site doesn't specify individual fares, but says qualified travelers can obtain more information about military leave travel by calling the airline at (800) 428- 4322. None of the other airlines I checked made a similar offer. A few made references to "military fares," but those were limited to military personnel traveling on official government business. Others promised to extend elite frequent-flier status to travelers called to duty (gee, that's good), and American said military personnel could change nonrefundable tickets without the usual service charge. But those deals hardly answer the needs of most service personnel or the= ir families. That's why Blue Star Moms is preparing a petition for submission both in the State of California and to the U.S. Congress to promote military airfares. The group is asking for reinstatement of the "military standby" fares offered to active duty military personnel during the Vietnam War. It is also asking for a reduction in the advance-purchase restrictions that apply to today's lowest fares. For more information or to participate in the petition drive, write to Blue Star Moms, P.O. Box 2537, San Ramon, CA 94583 or visit www.bluestarmoms.org. In the meantime, if you are in the service or you want to arrange a trip for a military relative or for yourself to visit that relative, forget about getting a really good last-minute deal on the giant airlines (except possibly US Airways). Instead, here are a few better options: -- For family members 65 or over, Southwest still offers attractive seni= or fares that don't require advance purchase (although they're not the line's lowest fares). -- Travelers of any age can sometimes find inexpensive air-hotel packages with fewer restrictions than low airfares usually carry. -- Travelers can usually get a much better last-minute deal on one of the low-fare airlines than they'd get on one of the larger ones. -- A quest for last-minute military travel is an ideal time to try the "opaque" sites, www.hotwire.com and www.priceline.com. Presumably, neither service personnel nor family members are terribly concerned about which airline to fly, or even what time of the day to travel, and the opaque sites offer a big price break if you're willing to allow the site to decide on your airline and your exact schedule. E-mail Ed Perkins at eperkins@ mind.net.=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2003 SF Chronicle