There is a terminology called split ticketing in the booking process. In this case the combination of two different airlines or tickets provide a lower fare than a standard RT (round-trip) or OW (one-way) fare. This anomaly occurs about 20% of the time. Shop for both. A good agent can ‘request’ for a split ticketing quote and can find a deal for you.
We often find on Future.Travel that a full economy flight with only higher fare basis seats available are more expensive than the same flight with a promotion or discounted business seat. Really depends on the route, commuter routes are not likely to be available as commuters grab the availability.
We re-center our corporate to a cheaper hub rather than take the higher cost of a home city ticket. Eg - A to C is XX, but B to C is XX -40% and A to B is 20 XX- 5%. So we recenter the travels to start @ B with RT to both A&C, the customer is saving on average about 35%. Works best for those who love business class but only want to pay economy.
