US passenger traffic declines for first time since April
US air travel volumes are weakening for the first time since April.
It marks an abrupt stop to the gradual recovery as Covid-19 cases continue to surge across the nation.
In the week to 19 July, there were 4.65 million travelers at US airports, the Transportation Security Administration says.
That is a 4% decline on the week earlier.
Air travel is still up compared to the historic lows in the early days of the pandemic, but there is a definite softness in demand right now.
Travelers from more than 20 states have to quarantine if heading to New York, and record high infection rates in Florida and elsewhere are severely hindering the recovery.
Business travel is still a mere fraction of normal levels.
Delta Air Lines recently rolled back planned schedules to only half the number of flights it was expecting to restart in August.
In fact Delta CEO Ed Bastian reckons international business travel will likely never be the same again, and will be a much smaller segment in the future.
Last week the airline posted a $5.7 billion second quarter net loss.
By Ray Montgomery, US editor
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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