Lufthansa and British launch "Pay when you fly" with small down payment and balance

Since the pandemic broke out, flying has become one of the most uncertain actions one can take. Travelers all over the world are grappling with cancellations and closures, and booking a flight puts some fear into the air. No one feels like wasting their money or chasing compensation for months. Especially when it comes to long-haul flights, which cost well over a few tens of euros. Hence, the idea of Lufthansa e British Airways: the innovative payment formula "Pay when you fly".

How the "Pay when you fly" option works

With the "Pay when you fly" option, the traveler pays only a small deposit at the time of booking (usually 10-20% of the ticket price). Instead, the balance occurs close to departure, even a few hours before takeoff. British Airways and Lufthansa were the first to experiment with the system.

BA actually offers two different "installment" payment options:

• the first option allows you to give a small down payment and then pay it off in a number of dates of your choice: the traveler can decide how much to pay and when, the important thing is that he or she balances everything before the flight
• The second option allows you to secure the trip with a small depot, but only if you book together flight and hotel or flight and car (from £120 for travel between £300 and £999 and up to £200 for travel between £3,000 and £3,499)

However, to secure a refund in the event of cancellation, it is necessary to purchase a "Fully flexible" tariff for flight.

For Lufthansa, however, the operation is a little different: the pan-European PAF (that's what its "Pay when you fly" fare is called) applies only to tickets issued 24 hours before departure. You purchase the ticket and, only when you have boarded the plane, are the money taken from your debit/credit card. This eliminates the need to process and charge any change of date or cancellation fees. Incidentally, this is nothing new for Lufthansa: the airline already experimented with this payment method last March for business travelers.

News from British Airways and Lufthansa.

British Airways looks optimistically to the future. "We fly to 43 countries on the green and amber list, without the need for quarantine and with discounts of up to 300 pounds," the company wrote on its Facebook page, emphasizing how it is able to offer more than any other British carrier.

Lufthansa, on the other hand, is focusing on theCompanion Special option for flying as a couple or family in Premium Economy, Business or First Class at a special price. The option is not available on every route, but it is really super attractive: you can book until July 20, 2021 and you fly until December 31, 2021 at super prices. Some examples? Two business class tickets cost 399 euros on the Rome - Vienna route, 559 euros Verona - Berlin, 659 euros Milan - Frankfurt. Departing from different airports, two tickets in Business Class to Oslo cost 559 euros, to Corfu 599. While, on the intercontinental flights front, two tickets in Business Italy - Toronto are found at 2,499 euros, while for New York if they spend any 1.299 And for Los Angeles 1,599. With the hope that between now and the end of December, the borders will reopen.