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I expect this has been asked and answered elsewhere, but I couldn't find an exact duplicate.

The multi-leg return fare:

CWL > AMS > PDX > AMS > CWL

is significantly cheaper than: 

AMS > PDX > AMS

KLM's booking office couldn't explain to me exactly why, other than to say it's how the fare structure works.

I assume the airlines have good economic reasons for this, though I can't imagine what they are.

And I also assume that the fare system and its terms and conditions have been carefully engineered, for whatever reason, to make a cheaper fare for the single leg unavailable.

Daniele Procida
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1 Answers1

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There is no reasonable explanation for it, other than the intention of driving traffic from Cardiff into the KLM network.

KLMs competition for passengers from Cardiff includes Bristol, Manchester and the London airports, and they want you to choose KLM so they price the entire journey competitively, otherwise they risk losing custom to other international airports.

Flying from AMS they are the major airline that flies the bulk of the routes and pretty much have you locked in - although the AMS-PDX segment is a codeshare with Delta.