Airline passengers will decline through 2010
Business fares to rise as carriers cut capacity
Tom Stundza -- Purchasing, 10/26/2009 3:12:22 PM
The Boyd Group International says this year's trend of declining passenger traffic will continue through 2010. Next year, 674.6 million passengers will depart on flights from U.S. airports, the Colorado-based consultant forecasts, which will be 74.3 million fewer than 748.9 million passengers in 2008.
Putting a damper on the travel industry's hopes for a recovery next year, Michael Boyd, president of the Boyd Group in Evergreen, Colo., says "the airline industry is now more rational, and won't add back capacity very rapidly, even with an economic upturn."
Speaking at the 14th Annual Aviation Forecast Summit this month in Lexington, Ky., Boyd says there will be 16 million fewer passenger trips in 2014 compared to 2008. That's why he predicts U.S. carriers will retire 622 regional jets by 2014, changing air service patterns. Fleets will restructure due to the declining economics of 50-seat jets, he adds, resulting in over 40% of these airliners being retired by 2014.
Changes in the way businesses travel along with the planned cutbacks by
carriers are factors that contribute to expected increases in business fares, according to the American Express global business travel forecast, as reported on Purchasing.com. American Express Business Travel expects airfare to rise 2% to 7% for domestic short-haul (economy class) flights.
See also: Corporate travel spending to grow in 2010
Airfare, hotel room rates fall-again
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