What would you do if you are the only passenger on the plane? While it may seem too good to be true, a woman from the Philippines had lady luck on her side after boarding a flight in which she was the only passenger!
When Louisa Erispe was boarding her flight, Philippine Airlines (PAL) PR 2820, from Davao to Manila on December 24, 2018, she never thought she would be the only passenger on the plane
In the post which has gone viral on social media, Erispe wrote that she was feeling nervous after realizing that she was the only passenger for the entire flight
However, she quickly settled in after the cabin crew told her the perks she had thanks to the almost empty plane.
According to Erispe, she had fun switching seats throughout the flight and taking pictures with the cabin crew at the end of the flight
In the post, she also thanked the plane’s captain and the cabin crew for the one-in-a-lifetime flight experience.
Some comments wrote that she was lucky to be able to fly on an empty flight as it looked like she had rented the entire plane for herself
Meanwhile, many netizens praised Philippine Airlines for allowing Erispe to fly despite her being the only passenger for the flight.
It may look like an unprofitable flight for the airline if they continue to fly despite having only one passenger.
According to former US Airway captain, John Cox in an interview with USA Today, there are a number of reasons why airlines still fly a plane even with only there is only a handful or one passenger.
1.The decision to fly is based on more than just headcount
Airlines also have to consider the aircraft maintenance schedules, the next day flights, and the weather when it comes to making a decision to fly an airplane.
2. The next-day flight might be full
Even if there are only a few passengers on the previous flight, mainly because it’s a late-night or early morning flight, the flight on the following day will usually get sold out as more passengers prefer to travel during the day.
3. The cabin may be empty but the cargo is full
Airplane does not only fly passengers but they also fly freight which is carried in the cargo holds.
Even when they are only a small number of passengers, the cargo holds might be full of freight. “Revenue from that cargo can more than pay for the flight.”
4. Mandatory maintenance
Aircraft maintenance is usually scheduled months ahead and it is mandatory for each airplane.
“Each airplane moves through a preplanned route allowing maintenance to be performed at pre-planned intervals, often overnight. Flight crews then are scheduled to meet the airplane throughout its route,” Cox said.
5. Weather factor
When the weather does not permit, the airplane will usually be rerouted to its original route as soon possible “to minimize the effect on the overall operation.”
