I World Traveler I am Not

The last couple of days I've been looking for airline tickets on-line.  Not for myself, I can't stand flying.  It's really not the flying that bothers me, it's that I don't like crowds of people in confined spaces.  And few places are more confining than an airplane.  It's not like I can get up and leave if the anxiety gets to me too much.  But I digress.

I've been looking for tickets for Jason.  What has amazed me is how fast the prices change.  In a matter of minutes they can go up or down a couple of hundred bucks for the same flight.  In particular I was looking a one flight that took off 3 hours later than another and it was $500+ more.  How can this be?  The planes are going to the same place.  Does one airline serve a better quality snack?  It ought to be mighty fine for the extra money.

Maybe some of you experience travelers can explain this one to me?