How early can a school group file start?

That is the carrier's open window. Delta publishes 240 days for the US, Canada, the Caribbean, Central America and Asia-Pacific, and 331 days for Europe and North Africa, Southern and West Africa and the Middle East.

Is that when we should start?

No. The open window is a ceiling, not advice. Most school programmes start from the term date and work backwards, which usually lands two to six months out and earlier for peak periods.

What supervision ratios apply?

They are set by the carrier. American publishes 1 adult per 20 minors non-stop and 1 per 15 on connecting itineraries. Confirm the ratio for the airline you are actually flying before you fix staffing.

When will the term-by-term calendar be published?

With the school study. We are not publishing month-by-month figures we have not measured, so this page carries the framework and the calendar follows when the data does.

School trip flight calendar: the organiser view

An airline's open window says how early a file may start. It does not say when your school should start. Those are two different calendars.

Get a school trip quote

Schools should not treat "book a year out" as a single number. An airline open window is how far ahead a group file may be started. An organiser decision window is when a school should actually begin, and it is set by term dates, consent returns and approval rather than by the carrier. This page maps the second against the first, so a trip is not planned against the wrong calendar.

Open windows versus decision windows

	Airline open window	Organiser decision window
What it answers	How early may a file start?	When should we start?
Who sets it	The carrier	The school
Typical shape	240 or 331 days out, by region	Two to six months, earlier at peak
What moves it	Carrier policy	Term dates, consent returns, approval
Cost of ignoring it	None — it is only a ceiling	Starting late and losing the block

What it answers: Airline open windowHow early may a file start?; Organiser decision windowWhen should we start?
Who sets it: Airline open windowThe carrier; Organiser decision windowThe school
Typical shape: Airline open window240 or 331 days out, by region; Organiser decision windowTwo to six months, earlier at peak
What moves it: Airline open windowCarrier policy; Organiser decision windowTerm dates, consent returns, approval
Cost of ignoring it: Airline open windowNone — it is only a ceiling; Organiser decision windowStarting late and losing the block

The 240 and 331 day figures are Delta's published group booking windows by region. Other carriers publish their own, and a window is permission to start rather than advice to.

Consent lag is a GROUP signal

The gap between knowing the headcount and knowing the names is the single most reliable indicator that a school trip belongs on a group file.

A year group size is known at the planning meeting. The names are not known until forms come back.
Individual tickets normally fix names at purchase, which means buying before the list exists or waiting until the fare has moved.
A group file can often hold the block against a name deadline, which converts the lag from a risk into a schedule.
Where the lag is short and the list is already final, the group file advantage narrows and individual tickets deserve a look.

Working back from the term date

The departure date is fixed by the school calendar. Everything else is derived from it.

Fix the travel window
Term dates, exams and staff availability decide this, and none of them negotiate.
Count back to the name deadline
That is the date the roster must be complete, and it is set in the file rather than by you.
Count back to consent returns
Allow for the forms that arrive late, because some always do. This is the step most plans underestimate.
Start the quote before that
The quote and the approval need to precede the consent chase, not follow it.

The research behind this page

Both studies are built from primary sources and free to quote with attribution.

What trip organisers ask.

How early can a school group file start?: That is the carrier's open window. Delta publishes 240 days for the US, Canada, the Caribbean, Central America and Asia-Pacific, and 331 days for Europe and North Africa, Southern and West Africa and the Middle East.
Is that when we should start?: No. The open window is a ceiling, not advice. Most school programmes start from the term date and work backwards, which usually lands two to six months out and earlier for peak periods.
What supervision ratios apply?: They are set by the carrier. American publishes 1 adult per 20 minors non-stop and 1 per 15 on connecting itineraries. Confirm the ratio for the airline you are actually flying before you fix staffing.
When will the term-by-term calendar be published?: With the school study. We are not publishing month-by-month figures we have not measured, so this page carries the framework and the calendar follows when the data does.

School trip flight calendar: the organiser view

Open windows versus decision windows

Consent lag is a GROUP signal

Working back from the term date

Fix the travel window

Count back to the name deadline

Count back to consent returns

Start the quote before that

The research behind this page

What trip organisers ask.

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