Skiplagging can save on flights. What happens if you get caught [Video]

Airlines may not be fans of “skiplagging,” but travelers who use it to save money on flights surely are.

The practice involves buying a connecting flight, with no intention of taking the second leg of the journey. Flyers do this when they find a connecting flight — that stops at their intended destination — that’s cheaper than flying direct.

Skiplagged.com, a website that helps travelers find these flights, said its customers saved around $180 on average, which collectively amounted to $54 million in the past year alone.

But there are risks. Skiplagging, or “hidden city ticketing,” is prohibited by most airlines.

“Purchasing a ticket without intending to fly all flights to gain lower fares” is a prohibited booking practice under American Airlines’ conditions of carriage. Violators can have their tickets canceled, be prevented from flying, or the airline may “not refund an otherwise refundable ticket,” it states.

But, the company’s founder Aktarer Zaman said …