After a year of battling the recession, the airline industry is seeing an uptick in traffic. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, 2010 will be the year that brings the airline industry back to its normal state, with fuller planes, fewer discounts, and lower fuel prices.
Improvement has been most evident within the scope of smaller airlines who fly domestically, but even larger carriers with more extensive international routes have started to see better numbers beginning in November, and reached unexpected levels of traffic this season.
Most of the larger airlines have begun raising billions of dollars in new debt and equity in the past 6 months, which is attractive to investors, and takes some of the worry away concerning possible bankruptcy. Due to small changes like charging extra fees for things like checked baggage, seat upgrade or choice, and other services have helped encourage the financial flow.
One area of travel, specifically is being watched closely to gauge the upswing. Business travel, which is based primarily on frequent, repeat travelers who will pay full fare for a last-minute flight, is one of the most reliable ways that an airline can count on revenue. According to surveys, it’s bouncing back, and is expected to grow more this year. One concrete sign of improvement were the generally flat, instead of decreasing.
© Cheapflights Ltd Andrea Mooney
