Strong demand for travel is giving U.S. airlines a financial boost as the industry battles through reduced flight schedules, higher fuel and labor costs, and concerns about the effects inflation could have on consumer spending, airlines officials said this week.
At issue is a competing bid for Spirit from another budget airline, JetBlue, which is offering about $1 billion more for Spirit.
In the U.S., the rate of cancellations over the last two weeks is up 59% from the same period in 2019, before the pandemic, likely due to a combination of weather, staffing shortages and air-traffic issues.
More than 2,800 flights within, into or out of the United States were delayed as of Saturday afternoon, according to the flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Airlines that have stumbled badly over the last two holidays face their biggest test yet of whether they can handle big crowds when July Fourth travelers mob the nation’s airports this weekend.
Pandemic-era problems that hobbled the national air system as it struggled to regain footing last summer have not abated, despite pledges from airline executives of a renewed focus on reliability.
Criticism of the government agency could serve as a pre-emptive defense in case airlines again suffer thousands of canceled and delayed flights over the holiday weekend.
The largest pilots union has approved a contract that would boost the pay of pilots at United Airlines by more than 14% over the next 18 months, potentially clearing the way for similar wage hikes throughout the industry.
The protest, which the union said drew up to 1,300 Southwest Airlines pilots, was the latest example of airline workers trying to put pressure on companies by taking their demands for higher pay directly to the flying public.
Shareholders of Miramar, Florida-based Spirit are scheduled to vote June 30 on a bid from Frontier Airlines, and JetBlue is trying to convince investors to scuttle the agreement and drive Spirit into JetBlue’s arms.
While most carriers are enjoying bumper sales as customers flood back following the lifting of COVID curbs, taking leisure trips and catching up with friends and family, there are doubts about how long the surge will continue as high fuel prices push airlines to hike fares.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said his department could take enforcement action against airlines that fail to meet consumer-protection standards, although he thinks that won’t be necessary.
By midmorning in the eastern United States, airlines had scrubbed more than 1,000 flights after canceling more than 1,700 on Thursday, according to tracking service FlightAware.
Airlines are struggling with shortages of workers, especially pilots, that are hurting their ability to operate all their planned flights.
JetBlue said Monday that it will now provide a $350 million reverse break-up payable to Spirit if a deal between the two isn’t completed for antitrust reasons.
U.S. airlines canceled more than 2,800 flights from Thursday through Monday, or about 2% of their schedules, according to tracking service FlightAware.
Analysts say a merger of any of the two carriers could create an airline with the scale and routes to more effectively compete with the nation’s four largest air carriers.
The chief of the Transportation Security Administration said Tuesday that his agency has quadrupled the number of employees who could bolster screening operations at airports that become too crowded this summer.
Air traffic to Florida picked up more quickly during the pandemic than many other places, and airlines have scheduled even more flights for this summer. That is raising concern about the potential for massive disruptions that could ripple far beyond the state’s borders.
The board of Spirit Airlines said it would continue to pursue a merger with Frontier Airlines.
