An American Airlines plane on the runway.
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The travel hack of “skiplagging” has been causing headaches for airlines for years.
United and Southwest Airlines have both previously filed lawsuits against Skiplagged CEO Aktarer Zaman.
Those suits, filed in 2014 and 2021, have either been dismissed or settled.
The controversial, money-saving air travel hack of “skiplagging” has been a thorn in the side of airlines for years. The scheme involves booking a plane ticket with a layover, then bailing on the flight to the final destination to save money — and it drives airlines nuts.
Airlines like United and Southwest have tried to fight the computer whiz whose website Skiplagged helped popularize the idea.
However, the airlines’ lawsuits against Skiplagged CEO Aktarer Zaman have been either thrown out or settled.
United and Orbitz filed suit against the Skiplagged CEO
In 2014, United and the travel website Orbitz sued Zaman, then 22 years old, over his flight-search engine showing cheaper “hidden-city” ticketing trips.
The lawsuit alleged that Zaman promoted “strictly prohibited” travel and accused him of “unfair competition” and “deceptive behavior.” Zaman’s website, the companies argued, cost them $75,000 in lost revenue.
Zaman and Orbitz ultimately settled their section of the suit, according to CNN Money, but United kept up the court battle until a judge dismissed the case.
A Chicago, Illinois, judge tossed the case because the court where the suit was filed did not have jurisdiction; Zaman worked and lived in New York City.
At the time, Zaman called the dismissal of the case a “victory” in an interview with CNN Money.
“It is pretty amazing … the court just shut them off,” Zaman said, according to the report.
Southwest went after Skiplagged with a lawsuit in 2021
In 2021, Southwest Airlines took at turn going after Skiplagged.
The airline filed a lawsuit against Skiplagged in Texas, alleging the flight-search engine violated its terms by displaying ticket prices and worked with Kiwi.com to use the airline’s flight data.
“Neither Skiplagged nor Kiwi is authorized to display Southwest fares or sell Southwest flights,” the airline’s lawyers wrote in the suit.
Last month, both Southwest and Skiplagged agreed to dismiss the case and it was settled out of court, according to Atlanta News First.