What is the situation called when there are more seats sold for a flight than its seating capacity?

The situation when more seats are sold for a flight than its actual seating capacity is termed overselling or oversale. This practice is often used by airlines as a strategy to maximize revenue, anticipating a certain percentage of passengers who may not show up for their flight. By selling additional tickets beyond the number of available seats, airlines aim to ensure that flights depart with full capacity.

Airlines use historical data and booking patterns to estimate the expected number of no-shows, which can vary based on factors such as day of the week, season, and route popularity. This strategy, while beneficial for revenue, can lead to situations where passengers are "bumped" from flights if everyone shows up, and airlines must have policies in place to handle such instances appropriately.

The other concepts listed—like overbooking, no-show, and passenger name record—are related to the ticketing and boarding process but represent different aspects of airline operations. Overbooking pertains to the overall strategy of selling more tickets than seats available, while no-show refers specifically to passengers who fail to appear for their flight, and passenger name record relates to the data system containing bookings and passenger details.