What is Standby? How to Pack Carry On? And Other Questions You Didn't Need Answered

Hello good friends and readers, 

I thought I'd take two minutes to answer some questions. 

First, what is "standby"?

I throw around the word "standby" all the time on this thing, and I'm not sure I've ever really explained too much, what that means. Now, without getting too much into the nitty-gritty (because I don't even know the nitty gritty and I don't want to perpetuate false information), let's get started. Essentially, flying "standby" or "nonrevenue", allows you to go on a flight without paying, or paying a much smaller yield fare. The catch? You only get on if there are open seats on the flight. You list on a flight, and then there is a hierarchy of statuses, to decide who will get the open seats. As a general rule of thumb, pilots will be listed higher than ramp agents. A ramp agent who's worked for the company for 30 years will be listed higher than a ramp agent who started a year ago. To fly standby, in most cases, you have to be or know someone who works for the airline. The rules vary, depending on your position, and what company. This is super great, in theory, but what does this actually look like in practice? 

It means you might not know exactly where you're going. In the weeks leading up to a trip, we start checking the seats and standby list for a flight. We'll keep monitoring this list right up until the flight leaves (with or without us). At some point, you need to list yourself on the flight, and then you can see exactly where you fall, and how likely it is that you'll get on the flight. The day of, you go to the airport like anyone else, and print off a boarding pass. The difference is that your boarding pass won't have a seat assignment on it. As soon as the flight boards, you go down to the gate, and sometimes they'll have a ticket and seat assignment for you right away. But more often than not, you sit there until everyone's boarded, and then they'll call you up and give you a seat. Or tell you that you didn't make it. If you're on, you're on. But if you're not, you need to come up with another plan. 

If flying standby has taught me anything, it has taught me to be flexible. And to pack both a swimsuit and a parka. If you need a travel plan and like to know where you're going and when, ya, this might not be for you. But if you can be flexible, patient, and get caught up in the spontaneous adventure of the whole thing, it's a really fun (and affordable) way to travel. 

Second, how to pack carry on? 

We always travel carry-on only, because if we check our bag, and then don't get on the flight, our suitcase won't necessarily be taken off. So if you're wondering how to pack all your needs into a "carry-on" and "personal item", I've got you. In fact, I made a whole (slightly cringy but very informational) vlog about it. 

Third, what is gate check? 

This is important to know when you're traveling carry-on. This happens usually on smaller planes, that run out of overhead room. The gate agents will ask passengers to "gate check" their roller bags as they are boarding. Most of the time, these bags get set aside on the plane and will get returned to you right on the jet bridge when you land. Sometimes though, these bags will go to baggage claim. Going to baggage claim probably doesn't matter too much if the flight you're getting on it going directly to your final destination. Could be tricky if you unexpectedly have to leave security to get your bag, and then run to a connecting flight. 

The other context for gate checking is if you have a stroller or a car seat for kids. Strollers aren't allowed on most planes, but they'll usually let you gate check for no charge so that you can haul the kiddos around the airport. So convenient. 

Fourth, do you have any tips for long flights? 

Ya. Drink lots of water, pack fuzzy socks or compression socks. Basically socks. Bring facial wipes and a neck pillow. Have an eye mask and/or earplugs if you have trouble sleeping. (I wrote a whole post on this a while back -- "Mythbusting" Long Flights). 

Fifth, what's a buddy pass? 

A buddy pass is how you can fly standby without being an airline employee or direct relative. Some companies give a certain number of buddy passes to their employees that more distant family or friends can use. You fly standby at yield fare. The catch is that you're wayyyyy down the status list. Past all the employees and their direct relatives. And if there are multiple buddies, they're ranked by the employer's status. We've done some traveling on buddy passes though, and sometimes they work out really really well. And we've brought some buddies with us on a couple trips too. I brought friends with me to Italy, and my friend Alec and I went to Denmark together. So they are pretty fun to have. 

Hope this answered some burning questions you had. Otherwise I just threw a bunch of random information at you, and honestly, I'm okay with that too. 

Peace, 

Cristiana