And the biggest piece of advice, Mr. Ek said, is to never leave for the airport without calling the airline and re-confirming the flight and your individual reservation.

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You want to make a restaurant reservation or book a flight?

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Under the likely deal, designated American and Japanese airlines will be able to link their trans-Pacific services to flights provided by third-country carriers, sharing flight numbers and even aircraft and reservation systems.

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Items found in the same area Saturday were confirmed to have come from the jet, including pieces of the aircraft's wing section, luggage and a leather briefcase containing an airplane ticket with a reservation code for the doomed flight, Brazilian air force spokesman Jorge Amaral said.

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They share reservation systems so that if a flight is delayed or cancelled passengers can safely rebook on another (yes competitive) airline.

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For every route, airlines load a dozen or more different fares into reservation systems and then pick which one applies to a specific flight at a specific time, usually based on how well that flight is selling and what the airline expects in demand for seats, including demand from business travelers who book later.

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