Non-Rev Travel 101

For the uninitiated, non-rev travel is a discounted airplane ticket reserved for airline employees. So named because the tickets are free or so deeply discounted that a non-rev ticket does not generate any revenue for the airline.

Non-rev travel provides extreme flexibility as these tickets can be changed at any time, and cancelled for free. But it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. These seats are not guaranteed, if a flight is full, it’s on to searching for the next flight. 

Let’s talk about the basics of non-rev.

Terminology

• Buddy Pass

  A non-revenue, standby ticket that can be shared with friends and family. The buddy pass rider must pay any taxes, fees and charges for each leg of the flight.

• Confirmed

  A guaranteed seat on a scheduled flight barring schedule changes, weather, mechanical concerns

• Interline Agreements

  Agreements established using Zonal Employee Discounts, known as ZED fares, to allow employees of one airline to fly standby on another.

• NRPS

  Non-Rev Positive Space

  A non-revenue ticket with a confirmed seat. This is typically reserved for those employees traveling for business

• NRSA

  Non-Rev Space Available

  A non-revenue ticket where the seat is unconfirmed and offered based on availability

• OAL

  Other Airline

  A ticket sold by one airline that includes flight segments to be traveled on another airline

Eligibility

Employees of most airlines are eligible to fly for free on their airline and on other airlines at discounted rates.  As well, most airlines allow an employee’s parents, spouse or domestic partner, and children (up to 23 years old) to fly on the employees’ benefits. 

Employees are typically allotted a set number of buddy passes for non-eligible friends and family to use. 

Costs

Typically, traveling domestically on your airline is going to be 100% free. These free flights are considered part of your compensation package which is why it’s so important to take advantage. When traveling internationally, you will be responsible for any any international departure/arrival taxes that are charged by the destination’s governing body. 

If you are not traveling on your airline, ZED fares will apply, ZED fares are based on mileage and calculated on a per segment basis. All fares are based on Economy class.

Flight Loads

Here’s where non-rev gets dicey, because you are at the mercy of the flight loads, it’s important to have as much information of how full a flight is. Each airline has a pass travel booking system that will allow you to verify flight loads when flying your airline.

Signing up on the Staff Traveler platform and the Load Share Facebook group are two resources to check flight availability. Checking more than 7 days prior to departure is useless as things change quickly.  Use the above resources to check flight loads daily starting 72 hours before departure. 

It’s important to understand the order with which airport agents clear the non-rev list and determine who makes it on a flight with limited availability.

1. Confirmed Passengers

2. Non-Rev Positive Space: This includes off-duty employees who are traveling for work, usually pilots, flight attendants, and maintenance team members who are getting in place for their next work flight.

3. NRSA Employees: If you’re flying on your airline, you’ll be cleared for the flight based on order of seniority.

4. Eligible family members

5. Guest Pass/Buddy Pass riders

6. Airline Retirees

7. OAL Travelers: When you’re flying on another airline, you have the lowest priority for clearing the flight and getting a ticket.

Bags

Checked bags should not be used when traveling on standby. Yes, for most airlines, a free checked bag is included in the non-rev ticket.  However, checked bags, particularly on connecting flights, are a recipe for disaster.  

My very first non-rev experience, I was heading for London, with a layover in Charlotte, SC. Due to full flights, I ended up in Rome after taking a journey through Charlotte and Philadelphia. Carrying on allowed me the flexibility to go where there were open flights. Otherwise, I would have spent days attempting to get to my bag, or worse, on the phone with the airline trying to get my bag back to me.  

My first non-rev journey: expectations vs reality.

Because non-rev travel is not generating revenue and the seats are not guaranteed, airlines do not assume financial responsibility for shipping a bag to you.  That’s a fancy way of saying that if you end up in Rome, with your checked bag in London, you’d be responsible for shipping costs to get the bag to you. 

There’s the basics to get you started on your non-rev journey. Stay tuned for more guides and resources.