The long-haul gamble

Why airlines discourage you from booking certain seats

- SIMON CALDER

In terms of demand for travel, Friday 20 June is an unremarkable day. Should you wish to fly from Edinburgh to London, you are spoilt for choice - and low fares.

Ryanair is currently selling its morning, afternoon and evening flights from the Scottish capital to Stansted for £17 each – a fare that helps explain why rail firms have not captured the entire London-Edinburgh route from planes.

The cheapest easyJet can offer is £19 to Luton; to Gatwick, you will have to fork out all of £30.

On British Airways, the sophisticated service and generous cabin-baggage allowance aboard the BA CityFlyer jet from Edinburgh to London City will set you back a minimum of £91.

But maybe your heart is set on Heathrow. How about the midmorning flight on British Airways from Edinburgh, arriving at the UK’s busiest airport at noon?

Better hurry: ba.​com says only one seat remains at the lowest fare.

Before I reveal the price, I need to stress that this is a businessclass ticket. You can select your seat free of charge for the 95minute hop. While easyJet and Ryanair will charge you extra for larger cabin baggage and checked luggage, every BA passenger is allowed two pieces of hand baggage. And as a business-class traveller, you can also check in two cases weighing up to 32kg each.

The one-way fare: £1,183.