It’s a mystery to most of us why airfare prices fluctuate so wildly. In this video, CNN’s Richard Quest (yes, I know, some people do find him irritating) explains why that is, and describes a newish way that you can score an upgrade.
Sadly, the video does not explain why return flights are cheaper than two one-way tickets — I believe it’s because airlines want to lock you in getting there and coming back — and why you can sometimes fly a lot farther on the same airline for less (for example, a return ticket on Emirates airline from Sydney to London can be cheaper than one from Sydney to Dubai, where the London flight stops over).
Here’s a more dryly presented video from Wendover Productions that goes further into the subject of seat pricing:
