每到假期，都有很多人乘飞机出行。机票的价格经常变化，有时候特别便宜，尤其是在淡季。机票卖这么便宜，航空公司怎么赚钱呢？
The secret of low airfares
by Mike Arnot
It's a seven-hour flight across the Atlantic at a bargain price: Low-cost airline Norwegian lets you jet from New York to Madrid for $154 one way, taxes included. And the likes of American Airlines and Lufthansa are all fighting for passenger pennies, offering round trip fares between various US cities and Europe for under 400 dollars.
Atlantic /ətˈlæntɪk/ n. 大西洋
bargain /ˈbɑːɡɪn/ n. 特价商品
airline /ˈeəlaɪn/ n. 航空公司
Norwegian /nɔːˈwiːdʒ(ə)n/ adj. 挪威的（这里指挪威航空）
jet /dʒet/ v. 乘飞机旅行
Madrid /məˈdrɪd/ n. 马德里（西班牙首都）
one way 单程
the likes of 像…之类
round trip 往返
fare /feə(r)/ n. 票价
But just how are these airlines making a profit on such low fares? They're not, says Gerald Cook, adjunct professor at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. "That single inexpensive ticket to Europe is not profitable for any airline but it adds to the total revenue of the flight," he explains.
profit /ˈprɒfɪt/ n. 利润
adjunct /ˈædʒʌŋkt/ n. 辅助用品（adjunct professor就是兼职教授）
single /ˈsɪŋɡ(ə)l/ adj. 单个的
inexpensive /ˌɪnɪkˈspensɪv/ adj. 不贵的、便宜的（由expensive加上表示否定的前缀in-）
profitable /ˈprɒfɪtəb(ə)l/ adj. 盈利的（由profit加后缀-able变成形容词）
revenue /ˈrev(ə)njuː/ n. 销售额、营业额
The airfare is not based directly on per-seat costs, according to Cook. Total costs to operate a flight include a massive fuel bill, salaries for two or more highly trained pilots and cabin crew, food and cleaning expenses and payments for aircraft with sticker prices of $250 million or more.
airfare /ˈeəfeə(r)/ n. 飞机票价
based on 基于
costs /kɒsts/ n. 成本
operate /ˈɒp(ə)reɪt/ v. 运营
massive /ˈmæsɪv/ adj. 巨大的
cabin crew 全体乘务员
expense /ɪkˈspens/ n. 费用、开销
payment /ˈpeɪmənt/ n. 所付的钱
aircraft /ˈeəkrɑːft/ n. 飞机
sticker /ˈstɪkə(r)/ n. 标牌（sticker price就是标价）
"Typical airline schedules are set twice yearly. The resulting costs to offer that schedule are virtually fixed," Cook says. "Fuel prices might change, but that's not something airlines control. The real variability is not cost, it's revenue. The airline's objective is to maximize revenue for a particular flight on a particular day, based on expected and actual demand."
schedule /ˈʃedʒuːl/ n. 日程安排
yearly /ˈjɪəli/ adv. 每年
resulting /rɪˈzʌltɪŋ/ adj. 做为结果的
virtually /ˈvɜːtʃuəli/ adv. 几乎
fixed /fɪkst/ adj. 固定的
variability /ˌveəriəˈbɪləti/ n. 变数
objective /əbˈdʒektɪv/ n. 目标
maximize /ˈmæksɪmaɪz/ v. 最大化、使最大
particular /pəˈtɪkjulə(r)/ adj. 特定的
actual /ˈæktʃuəl/ adj. 实际的
demand /dɪˈmɑːnd/ n. 需求
Cook estimates that around 10% of all seats are available as a basic economy fare. Once those tickets are sold, the fares will generally increase as the travel date approaches. "If you try to book an economy seat very close to departure, you might pay 10 times the basic economy fare," he says.
estimate /ˈestɪmeɪt/ v. 估计
economy /ɪˈkɒnəmi/ n. 经济（这里指经济舱，basic economy就是最便宜的经济舱）
generally /ˈdʒen(ə)r(ə)li/ adv. 一般来说（由general加后缀-ly变成副词）
approach /əˈprəʊtʃ/ v. 接近、靠近
departure /dɪˈpɑːtʃə(r)/ n. 离开（指飞机起飞离开机场）
"If the airlines did not offer low fares to entice passengers – albeit with significant restrictions – the seats would go unsold and generate no revenue. They are much better off selling some seats at low fares," Cook said.
entice /ɪnˈtaɪs/ v. 引诱、诱惑
albeit /ɔːlˈbiːɪt/ = although
significant /sɪɡˈnɪfɪk(ə)nt/ adj. 显著的
restriction /rɪˈstrɪkʃ(ə)n/ n. 限制（由restrict加后缀-ion变成名词）
unsold /ʌnˈsəʊld/ adj. 未卖出的（由sell的过去分词加上表示否定的前缀un-）
generate /ˈdʒenəreɪt/ v. 产生
better off 情况更好
Henry Harteveldt, founder of Atmosphere Research Group and an airline industry expert, says the objective of established airlines is to sell just enough basic economy fares to compete with the low-cost competition and also to push passengers into the higher fare classes within economy, premium economy and business.
founder /ˈfaʊndə(r)/ n. 创办人（由found加上表示人的后缀-er）
established /ɪˈstæblɪʃt/ adj. 建立时间长的、得到认可的
compete /kəmˈpiːt/ v. 竞争
competition /ˌkɒmpəˈtɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 竞争、竞争者（由compete加后缀-ition变成名词）
premium /ˈpriːmiəm/ adj. 优质的（premium economy指高端经济舱）
business /ˈbɪznɪs/ n. 生意（这里指商务舱）
The airlines use complex software to make dynamic price adjustments based on historical data, competitor fares, expected and actual sales for a particular fare class on a flight, along with some oversight by internal teams.
complex /ˈkɒmpleks/ adj. 复杂的
dynamic /daɪˈnæmɪk/ adj. 动态的
adjustment /əˈdʒʌstmənt/ n. 调整、微调（由adjust加后缀-ment变成名词）
data /ˈdeɪtə/ n. 数据
competitor /kəmˈpetɪtə(r)/ n. 竞争对手
sales /seɪlz/ n. 销量
along with 加上、伴随
oversight /ˈəʊvəsaɪt/ n. 监管、管控
internal /ɪnˈtɜːn(ə)l/ adj. 内部的
Are we in a golden age of low fares? Harteveldt thinks so. "Fuel prices have been reasonable. There is healthy demand for air travel in the US and Europe and even relatively healthy demand in Latin American and Asia," he explains.
golden age 黄金时代
reasonable /ˈriːz(ə)nəb(ə)l/ adj. 合理的（由reason加后缀-able变成形容词）
relatively /ˈrelətɪvli/ adv. 相对地（由relative加后缀-ly变成副词）
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