• You can land a heavily-discounted plane ticket with research and planning.airplane image by Clarence Alford from Fotolia.com
  
  When it comes to purchasing airline tickets, you don't have to pay full price to travel to a destination. But it takes planning, research and insider information to land heavily-discounted airline tickets. You also don't have to settle on strictly traveling on discount airlines. Heavily-discounted airline tickets can be obtained on every airline and for every flight, including ones to international destinations.
  
  

Join E-mail List and Social Media Websites

• People who sign up for an airline's e-mail list, newsletter, Facebook account and Twitter account are the first to know about heavily-discounted tickets. The tickets are often sold out by the time the general public finds out about the discounted rates. Also, airlines will often advertise special discounted rates that require codes to those on their e-mail lists. These rates are strictly exclusive, as the rates can only be obtained with special codes. Airlines will post exclusive deals on their Facebook and Twitter accounts, giving those who are members of the sites insider information.You can sign up for an airline's e-mail list and social media account through its website.
  
  

Discount Travel Sites

• Airlines often work with discount travel websites to issue heavily-discounted tickets to the public. According to hotwire.com, you can save an average of up to 40 percent by purchasing "Hot-Rate" airline tickets through discount travel websites. You have to be flexible when buying airline tickets through a discount travel web site, as most conceal the flight times until after you have made the purchase.
  
  

Family and Friends Buddy Passes

• If you have a friend or relative who works for an airline, you can fly at heavily-discounted rates using a buddy pass. Airlines issue buddy, or companion, passes to employees who pass on the savings to their family members and friends. The employees offer these passes to family members or friends for heavily-discounted prices. You have to be flexible to travel with a buddy pass, as an airline's first priority is to seat passengers who have purchased traditional tickets.
  
  

Purchase Early

• Never wait to the last minute to purchase airline tickets for trips that you know for certain you will take, such as summer family vacations and holiday visits. You will typically score a heavily-discounted airline ticket by purchasing it at least 14 days in advance, compared to a week or a few days before leaving. The summer is a busy travel period, so expect to pay higher rates for airline tickets to popular destinations. During the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, rates for airline tickets can also increase. To maximize your savings and avoid service fees, purchase airline tickets online.