Find a Flight 101

There are many people that don't fully understand how the flights work out of a regional airport. Very often people compare the difference between STC and MSP fares by checking what the fare is out of MSP and then checking what the fare is to get to MSP from STC. That would be purchasing two separate tickets and is not the right way to check.

To check what the difference in price from each airport is, I suggest to first check the fare from MSP to your final destination. This typically entails logging onto NWA's web site and entering MSP in the 'from' box and then entering your destination, say SEA, in the 'to' box. Once you find the flight that suits you, do the same with STC in the 'from' box (SEA in the 'to' box). This will give you an apples to apples look at the difference in fares (cost of the STC-MSP segment).

For example, you might find that the fare from MSP-SEA is $300 and the fare from STC-SEA is $380. This means the difference in fares is $80 and that the STC-MSP segment is essentially costing you $80.

Then plug the two costs that you've found (in the example above you would plug in $300 and $380) in the Cost Calculator to see if it is economical to fly out of STC. The cost calculator will factor in parking fees, gas, etc., into the overall cost of your flight.