Wondering how hectic the high season of summer travel will make the skies? Summer air travel will raise 3.7 percent above last year’s summer travel figure to set another all-time record, Airlines for America announced, with the U.S. expected to see an average of 2.68 million air travelers per day.
The summer travel increase will be seen just about everywhere. So what does that mean for airfare pricing and on-time arrivals?
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The main cloud on the horizon is the possibility of increased airfare thanks to gas prices. Fuel has gotten a lot more expensive over last year, and airlines will be strongly tempted to cover those increases by upping their prices.
The capacity to accommodate the summer travel demand will be developed through new routes and additional frequencies on existing routes, and helped by a steady stream of new airplane deliveries, especially the 737 and A320 family models that operate the bulk of domestic flights.
But another potential problem is ongoing difficulty with engines that power several popular commercial plane models. The recent Southwest engine failure requires increased inspections of the CFM engines that power many 737 models, and ongoing problems with engines that power some 320 and 321 neos are delaying deliveries. Trent engines on the 787 are also causing problems, requiring that some planes be grounded and some long-distance flights to take longer routes.
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The airlines most heavily hit by engine issues recently include All Nippon Airways, British Airways, Air New Zealand, Norwegian Air, and Virgin Atlantic. Several of these lines are leasing other planes to cover canceled flights. Fortunately, very few, if any, domestic U.S. flights will be affected by the issue.
Airlines for America hopes to continue some key gains from this year’s first quarter of operations: the lowest-ever rate of involuntary bumpings, plus slight improvements in on-time arrival rate and mishandled baggage.
Overall, your biggest worry should be increased fares—most notably, fewer seats at the lowest-advertised prices. And frequent flyer seats, as always, will be scarce on popular long-haul routes.
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Consumer advocate Ed Perkins has been writing about travel for more than three decades. The founding editor of the Consumer Reports Travel Letter, he continues to inform travelers and fight consumer abuse every day at SmarterTravel.
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Whether you’re about to go on vacation or just coming back from a trip, summer is always a good time to treat yourself to a spa service. It’s when we show the most skin and typically socialize the most, so why not put your best foot forward when it comes to your appearance and wellness. Here are six summer travel-ready beauty treatments in New York City you’ll love.
Itching to squeeze in a last-summer getaway before Labor Day but worried about the cost? Good news: There are still plenty of affordable destinations with cheap flights and hotels, according to Priceline, which just released data showing the most significant summer 2023 travel trends until Labor Day.
It’s a fact of loyalty-program life: Airline and hotel programs periodically adjust their award prices. Of course, those adjustments amount to price hikes more often than not. And, all things being equal, higher award prices amount to an overall devaluation of the program.
As changes to hotel-program award prices go, the latest for InterContinental’s IHG Rewards are decidedly modest: Prices for award nights at 400 hotels will change by either 5,000 or 10,000 points, half moving up, half moving down. If it were just that 50-50 split, Rewards members might dismiss it as a wash and count their blessings. After all, “It could have been worse.”
The 26-country no-border-control Schengen area is in danger of collapsing under the migration threat. Presumably, the new border controls will be for no more than two years. But for now, you have to figure on reverting to the bad old days of mind-numbing border hassles within the area.
Following recent announcements from Delta and United that they would cut back on flights between the U.S. and U.K., American has hinted that it, too, is expecting diminished demand to Europe over the coming months.
Airlines for America, the trade group representing the interests of U.S. airlines, is predicting that 15.6 million travelers will fly during the Labor Day weekend (Wednesday, August 31 – Tuesday, September 6). That’s a 4 percent increase over last year’s 15 million Labor Day flyers.
If “summer travel” triggers images of beachside idylls and Disney theme-park thrills, you likely drive rather than fly to your summertime vacation spots. Because summer air travel is a very different picture, indeed.
Long lines, full flights, niggling fees for everything: Welcome to the new normal when it comes to air travel. While the flights can’t get much fuller, and there are few new opportunities to charge extra for non-basic services, those long lines are going to get longer before they get shorter.
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There’s no shortage of new airlines servicing North America right now: Norwegian, WOW, Primera, XL Airways, Level, Flair, and Joon have recently sprung up or expanded. But none of these new carriers is based in the U.S.
As reported by USA Today, lawmakers in Missouri are expected to pass a bill that will amend the state’s liquor law to allow travelers to take alcoholic drinks with them to their boarding gates.