The Middle-Eastern carriers like Etihad, Emirates, Gulf Air and other airlines have slashed down airfare as a part of their long-term strategy to attract a large chunk of Indian traffic to overseas destinations. In addition to that they have started to give discounts on all their flights to Africa, EU and US. This trend has resulted in a strong competition between different airlines who are struggling to capture their market share. Although the strategy has proved effective in drawing customers and has brought higher returns for the airlines but the passengers can't be said to have benefited from the same because low pricing also has a loop side.
Earlier, the pricing followed a simple fundamental where full price included the cost of travel, food and other services. But now most of the low price domestic flights charge extra for food and baggage handling at check-in. It is believed that the same might be applicable for full-fare flights, which may roll back the additional services like complimentary food and baggage handling at check-in. Although in India we have a free check-in for the luggage and a flyer is only charged with extra money if he or she exceeds the carrying limit. Many airlines in the countries like US charge extra for check in and it is a near possibility that the system may be introduced in the countries like India.
In the scenario where air ticket prices are subject to fuel prices and market strategies, you will definitely have to be ready to face the aggression of air carriers. You can beat the rising price by online tickets, all airlines have their own online ticketing portals and you can directly book from them. You can also check different aggregator websites and compare the prices.
The best way to economize on air tickets would be to subscribe to the newsletters of different airlines and watch out for the offers and discounts offered by them. In a bid to sell all the seats, airlines often offer deep discounts on the air tickets and even offer tour packages at a discounted price. There is also an emerging trend of organizing flash sales, where airlines announce a time for selling tickets at deep discounts. The time period is relatively short and the discount offered is phenomenal, this allows airlines to reap bumper sales in a relatively short period of time. Besides generating sales, initiatives like these serve as a publicity measure and help to bolster the image of an airline. You can book flight tickets without falling for the trap if you check your air tickets minutely and check your base fare and the total fare and make a note of what you are paying for the services and what are the charges applicable to you.