Is travel coming back? Airports have busiest days since March 2020

“We have seen glimmers of hope over the past year, but they have been false hopes,” Mr Bastian said. “But it seems to be true.”

His comments came after a weekend when airport volumes hit their highest levels in a year, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

Airline shares climbed on Monday. Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc.

rose 8.6% to $ 61.13, while shares of American Airlines Group Inc. 7.7% and Delta shares rose 3.3%.

The pandemic came to a standstill near last spring. Travel restrictions and fears of infection kept people at home and out of airports for most of the year: U.S. airlines carried 60% fewer passengers by 2020 than in 2019, bringing passenger traffic to its lowest level since the mid-1980s, according to the Bureau. of Transport Statistics.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to provide anti-travel advice, and the number of people passing through U.S. airports is still half – or less – than it was in 2019. most days, according to the TSA.

But the numbers are climbing. Airports hit nearly 1.36 million people on Friday and more than 1.34 million people on Sunday, two of the busiest days since March 2020.

The recent uptick in plane tickets is helping to halt the amount of money changers have been losing every day, officials said Monday. Airlines have been on track to shoot through $ 150 million in cash per day in the first three months of this year, according to trade group Airlines for America.

United CEO Scott Kirby told the conference Monday that the company expects its cash flow to turn positive, excluding debt payments, this month. Mr Bastian also said Delta plans to stop firing on money as soon as this month.

“We know we can’t put Covid in the background mirror yet,” said Mr Kirby, noting that the airline is still unprofitable and we need to focus on debt that is they are repaid. But he said he expects a steady increase in travel could be on the way after a year when many people stopped or reduced leisure experiences.

Air officials have long said that travel demand would rebound when more people are vaccinated. While many international borders remain closed and businesses are in no hurry to resume consumer meetings and conferences, executives said there are signs that pent-up demand is returning.

“The last three weeks have been the best three weeks since the pandemic struck,” said American Airlines CEO Doug Parker.

Carriers have also taken on a firmer financial footing, having received three rounds of government support to cover labor costs, as well as billions of dollars of private funding. The American Rescue Act that President Biden signed into law last week raises $ 14 billion to cover the salaries and benefits of airline workers due to non-commitments. showering or dropping off workers until they fall. That will bring the total amount of government payment support to airlines to $ 54 billion.

American Airlines also announced last week that it would raise $ 10 billion by aligning its flight program as a benchmark.

“For the first time since this crisis hit a little over a year ago, we at America are not looking to raise any money,” Mr. Parker said.

Southwest Airlines Co.

and JetBlue Airways Corp.

Monday also said more people are making plans to travel, plan vacations or trips to visit friends and family.

Write to Alison Sider at [email protected]