Airline companies of the UK keep announcing cheap tickets from time to time. The Sunday Times checked out the veracity of some of the deals offered. Here's a summary of what goes on from the time of booking to the time of flying:

EASYJET: www.easyjet.com

Luton to Barcelona

The airline was set up in 1995 by 31-year-old Stelios Haji-Ioannou with a little help from his father, a Greek shipping magnate.

How many cheap seats? ``Never less than 10 per cent.''

UK airports: Luton and Liverpool.

Routes and return fares: Luton to: Aberdeen (Pound 48-Pound 248), Amsterdam

(Pound 91.20- Pound 251.20), Athens (Pound 100-Pound 338.69), Barcelona (Pound 108-Pound 288), Edinburgh (Pound 48 Pound 248), Geneva (Pound 95-Pound 255), Glasgow (Pound 48-Pound 248), Inverness (Pound 48-Pound 248), Madrid (Pound 108-Pound 288), Nice (Pound 109.70-Pound 290.70); Palma de Mallorca (Pound 128-Pound 288).

Liverpool to: Amsterdam (Pound 91.20-Pound 261.20);Nice (Pound 130.70-Pound 290.70).Four weeks to go: A 10-minute wait before reaching sales assistant Richard.

I ask for the cheapest fare to Barcelona, leaving Saturday, September 26, and staying two nights. Richard says a ticket for the 2010 flight will cost Pound 49 one way (an 0910 or 1420 departure would be much, much more expensive).

The return would cost Pound 99 for the 1645 flight, Pound 69 for the 0650. So the cheapest fare is Pound 118, including tax. Richard warns me that the 1645 return is filling up fast and prices will only go up.

Sunday Times: ``When did the cheapest tickets go?''

Easyjet: ``Ages ago.''

ST: ``What's the cheapest fare around that time?''

Easyjet: ``Pound 54 one way on October 2.''

ST: ``That's not Pound 49.''

Easyjet: ``It's only Pound 5 more! Anyway, you can get the return for Pound 39, which works out the same overall.'' (So the cheapest fare isn't actually the cheapest fare at all, it seems.)

ST: ``How many seats exactly are left for the September 28 1645flight?''Easyjet: ``Nine are showing.''

ST: ``So there are only nine left?''

Easyjet: ``That's all that's showing. Fares only go up; book as soon as you can.''

Three weeks to go: Prices are the same, but there are now only six seats for the return leg. I feel pressurised to book, so I do. There is no charge for using my credit card and no hard sell to take Easyjet insurance. I am given a reference and told I won't be issued a ticket. Confirmation of my flights is faxed through about an hour later; the paperwork arrives in the post a week later, with a discount voucher for train travel.

Two weeks to go: The prices have risen by Pound 10 for the outward flight and the 1645 is sold out.

One week to go: My outward flight is Pound 64; there are only two seats left. Intriguingly, seven seats are available again on the return flight, at Pound 129.One day to go: The outward flight is Pound 69, the return Pound 139.

Outward flight

Check-in: Quick, efficient and friendly. I quote my referencenumber and am handed a laminated boarding card.

On-board passenger count: 114 on a 148-seater 737.

On-board comfort: Decor a little shabby, but leg pitch is fine and seats just about comfortable enough for a short flight.

On-board catering: Soft drinks at 50p; wine at Pound 2.50 a glass; snacks from 50p.

Punctuality: Arrived 30 minutes late in Barcelona.

What other passengers paid

The cheapest one-way tickets, at Pound 49, were booked in February--seven months ago--over the phone or through the Easyjet Website, but one group of four got Pound 49 seats over the Internet just three weeks before travel. Those paying the highest fare (Pound 148) had booked within the last week.

About half had travelled with the carrier before, most had experienced delays, but thought that a small price to pay, considering the price they had paid.

Return flight

Check-in: Efficient and friendly. No queue.

On-board passenger count: 144 on a 148-seater.

On-board comfort and catering: See outwardflight.Punctuality: Five minutes late.

What other passengers paid

This was a more popular flight time and the average return fare was consequently much higher--Pound 188, but still up to Pound 100 cheaper than rivals'. One couple, who'd paid Pound 188 return and booked a month ago, had previously experienced a five-hour delay travelling on Easyjet to Amsterdam. ``They didn't keep us informed, but it's so much cheaper, we're willing to take the risk of a delay.''

The cheapest return (Pound 60) was organised over the Internet.

Verdict

Luton is surprisingly easy to reach: Our plane landed at 1805 and I was in central London at 1855. If you book early, or over the Internet, and travel on the carrier's less popular flights, it's a bargain.

Marks out of 10: 9.

GO: www.go-fly.com

Stansted to Rome

In May, British Airways reacted to the proliferation of low-cost airlines by launching Go.

Go offers one class of fare, but two types of ticket: standard (non-changeable orrefundable) and flexible (fully changeable). There is no complimentary food, but drinks and snacks are on sale.

How many cheap seats? Will not say.

UK airports: London, Stansted.

Routes: Bologna, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Lisbon, Milan and Rome.

Return fare range: From Pound 70 (Edinburgh only; all other flights start at Pound 100) to Pound 300.

Four weeks to go: Within 10 seconds, I was asking for the cheapest return to Rome, for two nights in September.

Go: ``The lowest fare is Pound 140.''

ST: ``What about the Pound 100 deal?''

Go: ``Every flight is allocated a substantial number of seats at the lowest fare. Once they're sold, it goes up to the next price and so on.'' Many Go passengers apparently book three months ahead.

The Pound 140 ticket (including airport taxes) meant I would depart Stansted at 1610 and return from Rome on the 2005. If I wanted the 0900 flight, returning the same time, that would be Pound 150, and returning at 1300 would be Pound 170. The lowest flexible fare on mydays was Pound 210. A typed confirmation of my flights was faxed within two minutes.

If I were travelling to Stansted by train from Liverpool Street station, my confirmation entitled me to a return ticket with a special Go 50 per cent discount at Pound 11. I resisted the Go travel-insurance package for Pound 10.

Three weeks to go: The fare is Pound 120.

ST: ``What? That's Pound 20 cheaper than seven days ago.''

Go: ``A computer system forecasts the seats we're expecting to sell. If we don't sell that number, at that price, then we haven't hit our forecast.

Then we have to lower the price to increase demand.''

Okay, it was only Pound 20, but irritating when I had been convinced to buy earlier.

Two weeks to go: The fare had gone up to Pound 135. Just one standard-return fare left. All the flexible fares were Pound 250. If I had not booked already, I was told, I should do so now because tickets were going fast.

One week to go: There are now four standard-return fares, again at Pound 135.One dayto go: Tickets were still available at Pound 170, three hours before take-off. Could I buy half a dozen at a discount? I'm afraid not, came the reply. It doesn't work like that.

Outward flight

It certainly doesn't work like that. With just 61 seats sold, our Boeing 737-300 resembled the night bus from Grozny.

Check-in: Cheerful and helpful.

On-board passenger count: 61 on a 148-seater.

On-board comfort: Roomy and nice modern upholstery.

On-board catering: A great cup of coffee (Pound 1) and an Applewood smoked-cheddar sandwich (Pound 2.50) that made me bilious.

Punctuality: On time.

On arrival: The public-transport infrastructure at Ciampino is feeble. Hence, Go has set up a special coach service to the city; Pound 7 for a return ticket, bought in-flight. The problem is you are dropped off at the bleak Plaza Santa Maria Maggiore. I had to wait 20 minutes for a cab. I later learnt that this area is one of the city's most dangerous, which everyone says tourists should avoid.

Whatother passengers paidpAt least three people who booked after I had paid only Pound 100.

Return flight

Check-in: Effortless.

On-board passenger count: 144 on a 148-seater.

On-board comfort and catering: Much as the outward leg, except the flight home was packed and, without enough sandwiches on board, many passengers went hungry. I was one of the dubiously lucky ones to buy and bit into a smoked-turkey and coleslaw sandwich (Pound 3) and wished I had been in the centre of the aircraft and received the complimentary drink instead.

What other passengers paid

Everyone I spoke to had paid Pound 100 for their return tickets. And everyone, except husband and wife John and Mercedes, from Maidstone, was happy. Their 0900 outbound flight was delayed for mechanical reasons, then by a crew change and finally got away at 1400: ``And they didn't keep us informed,'' John told me, angrily. ``When we arrived in Rome, the airport was deserted and there were no taxis.''

Punctuality: 15 minutesearly.

Verdict

Good value, even if you pay more than the lowest fare. My main gripe is with the Italian end, which seemed studently and poorly organised.

Marks out of 10:8.