Record summer air traffic leading to air fare wars
After months of rising air prices and record numbers of passengers, US airlines are apparently poised for an air fare ware.
United Airlines this week cut its prices on hundreds of advanced-purchase fares usually scooped up by leisure travelers, reported The Wall Street Journal.
American, Delta and Continental matched the cuts on a more limited basis.
The cuts ranged from 4 to 8%.
The airlines didn’t change the cost of business fares, which have been running about 20% higher than last year.
A United spokeswoman told the newspaper the fare sale was not driven by softening sales and that rates are always cut back after the peak summer season. But others were dubious.
“It seems people are getting a little bit cranky because the prices have gotten so high,” Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com, told the newspaper.
The fare hikes were aimed at leisure travelers.
The percentage of seats filled in June hit a record 85.8% at the seven largest carriers.
That compares with the first four months of the year when the 10 largest airlines filled 78.2% of their seats.
“The prevailing wisdom was that we’d never reach 80% load factors,” said John Heimlich, chief economist for the Air Transport Association.
June traffic at the nation’s major airport increased only slightly over last year, but that was offset by cuts in carrier capacity.
High air travel demand this summer coupled with some bankrupt carriers cutting back on travel has led to a shortage of empty seats.
Report by David Wilkening
David
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