![]() ![]() To tackle this problem, Delta has said it now plans to overbook flights even more. Delta's load factor in the March quarter dropped by 4 percentage points from a quarter ago. The waving of change fees, meanwhile, is encouraging people to revise plans at the last minute, affecting the proportion of seats sold, known within the industry as passenger load factor. While the fare data has stoked concerns about consumer demand, Hopper's lead economist, Hayley Berg, said overall spending on travel has gone up. It is having a cooling effect on domestic airfares.ĭata from online travel agency Hopper showed average domestic round-trip airfare declined 15% to $285 in April from last year. Delta Airlines reported that bookings for trips inside 30 days were declining, while those outside 30 days were stronger.Ĭarriers did not share comparative data for last year, but Southwest Airlines Co said bookings for trips closer to the departure date have weakened compared to last summer.ĭelta Air Lines Inc CEO Ed Bastian ascribed it to an attempt on the part of customers to lock in the opportunity to travel sooner as well as elimination of flight change fees by many airlines. United said bookings for trips within 21 days are weaker than those beyond 21 days. Passengers are booking flights earlier than they did through much of the pandemic, when travel restrictions and health concerns made planning in advance difficult. "We're still figuring out that new normal."Īirlines are also seeing a change in ticket sales. "We believe demand is just structurally different than it was pre-pandemic," CEO Scott Kirby said. United last month said it wants to expand its Florida network. Since the Chicago-based carrier's network is more focused on business traffic, which has not fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels, its revenue suffered in the last quarter. It now expects capacity this year to be up 19%-22% from last year compared with previously estimated growth of 23%-28%, resulting in higher operating costs.Ĭhanging travel patterns are also affecting United Airlines, which has a relatively small presence in the Caribbean and Florida where demand is usually strong in the winter. In contrast, the ultra-low-cost carrier last week said its revenue per available seat mile on peak travel days is stronger than before the pandemic as customers are willing to pay a lot more to travel on the other days of the week.įrontier has eliminated an unspecified number of routes as part of its network restructuring. "That's why travel for leisure is the hardest on Tuesdays and Wednesdays." "The most common two days in the office are Tuesdays and Wednesdays," said Daniel Shurz, a senior vice president at Frontier Airlines. The Denver-based carrier attributed the change to flexible work arrangements, where more people are spending two to three days a week working in the office. It marks a shift from last year when some airlines said midweek was less of a trough. Those evolving patterns have forced companies to adjust.įrontier Airlines decided to slash flights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays by about 20%, citing weak demand. Citi's data shows that these so-called close-in ticket sales have moderated for a third straight week, but those for trips in June and July have improved. ![]() Similarly, customers are booking trips well in advance compared with last year, leading to a moderation in ticket sales close to the date of travel. Transportation Security Administration data shows passenger traffic this year on average has fallen 14% on Tuesdays and Wednesdays compared with Mondays, and then it rebounds on Thursdays. Travel demand has also softened on days in the middle of the week, but has strengthened on peak days. No-show rates have gone up as customers are changing their travel plans more frequently than before. "Today's flexible work conditions are helping to drive changes in ticket-purchasing patterns." Citi analyst Stephen Trent said. They are also fueling worries about the strength of travel spending amid growing economic uncertainty, leading to a 6% drop in airline shares from their highs in January. CHICAGO (Reuters) - Shifting travel patterns by consumers in a post-pandemic world are forcing airlines to guess at what is the "new normal" as they seek to adjust by cutting flights, revamping networks and packing even more passengers into planes.Įven as the thirst for travel remains strong, the changing trends are driving up airlines' operating costs and hurting revenue. ![]()
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