Have you ever arrived at your airline’s check-in counter only to be told that you’re in the wrong place?

That’s probably because you were on the right flight, but it wasn’t theirs. You were on a code-share flight.

Code-share flights means that the flight is marketed by one or more airlines, but is only operated by one airline.

The marketing carrier is the one that sells you the ticket; the operating ticket is the one that provides the airplane, crew and ground handling service.

So when you buy a plane ticket, confirm whether it’s a code share.

The term “operated by” on the booking form is a dead giveaway.

When checking in, you want to go to the ticket counter by the operating carrier, which also handles all the baggage problems.

However if you need to change or cancel your flight, you’ve got to go to the marketing carrier.

And here’s one last tip: If you find a well-priced flight that’s operated by airline A and marketed by airline B, before you make your purchase, check out the price of booking the exact same flight with Airline A itself.

You might just find a better deal.

For more information, check out our Airlines & Airports section.

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