(CNN) — Summer air travel has been rough, to say the least. Wonderful, many travelers would say.
About 55,000 flights have been canceled in the U.S. since the Friday before Memorial Day, and nearly a quarter of U.S. flights have been delayed this summer, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware.
Kathleen Bangs, a former airline pilot and spokeswoman for FlightAware, said air travel has been plagued by “a huge understaffing problem” so far this season and throughout 2022.
Bangs is inclined to give airlines the benefit of the doubt in their efforts to increase flight schedules ahead of the pandemic with staffing challenges in 2022.
“I think they really thought they were going to bring back enough employees and hire enough new ones to meet the demand, but as we all saw, they didn’t,” Bangs said.
Weather and air traffic controller staffing problems contributed to the summer disruptions.
But some industry experts are cautiously optimistic about air travel this holiday Labor Day weekend, with forecasts for a smoother fall travel season.
According to travel app Hopper, 12.6 million passengers are expected to fly out of US airports over the holiday weekend. Thursday and Friday will be the busiest days, Hopper predicts. Monday will also be busy as travelers head home.
The US Department of Transportation has released a new online dashboard where passengers can find comparative information on what each of the major US airlines offers passengers when delays or cancellations are caused by factors within the airline’s control.
Hope for Labor Day weekend
Scott Keyes, founder of the flight deals and travel advice website Scott’s Cheap Flights, recently told CNN Travel that he expects less disruption to air traffic over the Labor Day weekend than travelers saw during the Memorial Day weekend earlier summers.
“Looking back over the summer, you had some big vacation periods. You had Memorial Day when air travel went horribly. This may interest you : You plan on traveling to Germany? 6 questions you need to ask before you go. There were massive delays and cancellations that turned into a nightmare for many travelers… And then you had a Fourth of July weekend where travel was minimal,” Keyes said.
He predicts that Labor Day weekend will be closer to the Fourth of July.
“The reason for that is, I think there will be fewer travelers on Labor Day than on Memorial Day,” he said. “With fewer passengers, you will put less strain on the system.”
And less chance of a domino effect if the weather or staff are not ideal. As of 7 a.m. ET, about 500 flights within, into or out of the U.S. had been delayed, according to FlightAware. Thousands of delays per day were common this summer.
Travelers arrive at Newark Liberty International Airport on July 3, 2022 in Newark, New Jersey.
The ‘optimal’ journey towards autumn
‘Optimal’ travel heading into fall
Bangs said airlines have cut their summer schedules by about 15%, which she says is one of the main reasons delays and cancellations haven’t been higher. On the same subject : Airline tickets could drop by 25% in August – Time to make travel plans?.
So far in summer 2019, just over 50,000 flights have been canceled – or about 1.7% of flights. About 18% of flights were delayed that summer. This summer, those numbers are closer to 55,000 cancellations – or about 2.2% of flights, with about 23% delays.
More schedule reductions are already in the works for the fall, and demand typically drops when kids go back to school, Bangs said.
She said more than 52,000 U.S. carrier flights have been dropped from fall schedules, including more than 30,000 American Airlines flights.
“Travel should be optimal between September and October as demand declines so there isn’t the same level of stress from the heavy airline schedules that we saw in the summer,” Bangs said.
And there’s a reason people are cheering on the prices right now.
The experts at Hopper recently found that US domestic airfares are down 37% for travel in September and October compared to summer airfares.
And it’s worth following up and getting attractive holiday passes as well. Air fares “are going to go up very quickly as we get closer to Thanksgiving and Christmas,” said Hayley Berg, Hopper’s chief economist.
Bangs also saw one-third price drops for many city couples in September and October.
“With reduced seating in the fall, people thinking of traveling in September and October and even early November should buy those tickets now while they’re discounted,” she said.
Bangs expects holiday fares to remain lower through September and possibly into October before rising.
Passengers wait at LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York on July 1, 2022.
Angus Mordant/Bloomberg/Getty Images
What about holiday travel later this year?
What about holiday travel later this year?
Bangs said airlines won’t be fully prepared for the 2022 Thanksgiving and Christmas season until “they get their headcount back to or above 2019 levels. See the article : Toxic culture and ‘race to the bottom’: Pilots open up about why air travel is in chaos.”
She also said she expected the circulation of variants of covid and seasonal viruses such as flu to affect employee absenteeism this fall, noting that the disease hit airlines hard between the 2021 Christmas season and January.
“With reduced schedules and increased staffing, airlines look to be in a better position than last year for the 2021 Thanksgiving and holiday travel season,” Bangs said.
Weather, of course, is a wild card. Last Thanksgiving went smoothly, “in part because the weather was very cooperative in the contiguous 48 states.”
Shaping the air travel outlook
Solving the United States’ aviation woes is still a work in progress.
In addition to pressuring airlines to provide more transparency about passenger rights, the DOT proposed new rules that would strengthen protections for air passengers. This proposal is open to public comment.
“I understand that you’re never going to have any cancellations. There’s always going to be a storm somewhere, a surprise somewhere, a problem somewhere,” US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently told CNN’s Kate Bolduan.
“But we need a stronger system. And we expect airlines that collect revenue from ticket sales to be willing to service the tickets they sell.”
The U.S. pilot shortage isn’t going away anytime soon, Bangs said.
“It may seem less of a problem in the fall months when demand drops, the weather improves and there are generally fewer flights. But new pilots can only be created over a long time frame,” she said.
And while they’re less visible to the public, there’s also a shortage of mechanics and technicians, Bangs said.
Transportation Department Buttigieg acknowledged that the Federal Aviation Administration also has staffing problems, although he still attributes most of the recent disruptions to air travel to the airlines.
“We’ve seen air traffic control staffing challenges, particularly in the New York area and Florida airspace — mostly because of the hole the pandemic has torn in the training process,” he said.
More strategies to come
More strategies to come out ahead
Here are some tips on navigating the skies now and in the coming weeks and months as we hope and wait for smoother journeys:
Fly as early as possible: “The earlier you book your flight, the better the chances are that everything will go smoothly because … the weather is better in the morning than in the afternoon,” Keyes said. “And also because you don’t have the risk of cancellation after a domino effect.”
Emulate savvy business travelers: “They have TSA pre-clearance. They have airline apps loaded on their phone,” Bangs said. The FlightAware app also helps keep passengers informed of flight changes.
Nonstop: Bangs and Keyes suggested booking nonstop via connecting flights whenever possible. It might be worth the extra cost, if any.
Don’t check a bag: “If your flight is delayed or you have to reschedule or miss a connection, it’s a lot easier to do that if they don’t have to find your bag in the belly of the plane as well,” Keyes said.
Ask for everything you can get: Revised airline policies (see links above) seek to clarify what you’re entitled to if your flight is disrupted.
You can also request other accommodations, such as a voucher for a free flight or half a mile on your frequent flyer account, Bangs said.
“See what you can get” and “always be polite.”
Top image: Travelers line up to enter a security checkpoint at Newark Liberty International Airport on July 1, 2022. (Jeenah Moon/Getty Images)
What is the safest time to fly?
Summer is the safest season to fly. The safest time to fly is early in the day. More accidents happen later in the day when pilots are tired, especially when the weather is bad and there have been delays.
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What are the worst days to buy airline tickets?
That means Thanksgiving weekend is the worst time to fly in the United States, followed by Super Bowl weekend. The days just before Christmas and Easter week are terrible for domestic and international flights.
Do flight prices drop on Tuesday? On Tuesday morning, they look at how much the competitors are charging for the courses and adjust their prices accordingly. By afternoon, they reached the most competitive prices and therefore Tuesday afternoon is the cheapest time to buy a plane ticket.
When should you not buy a plane ticket?
Here’s the key: Avoid booking 30-45 days before the flight. Some airlines offer cheap flight prices in the weeks before departure, but they are few and far between. In general, especially before the pandemic, airlines increase the prices of flights at the last minute.
What day are airline tickets most expensive?
Not surprisingly, they found that the most expensive days to fly are around the holidays. In 2019, the days before or after Christmas, Thanksgiving, July 4th, and Memorial Day weekend had the highest average airfares. December 21, 2019 – the Saturday before Christmas – had the highest average ticket price at $588.
Where is the best time to travel in September?
Best places to visit in September
- The Grand Canyon.
- Big Sur.
- Honolulu – Oahu.
- Greenville, SC.
- Prague.
- Vancouver.
- Santiago.
- Flagstaff.
Is September a good time to visit the USA? The best time to visit the United States is usually between June and September, but in warmer areas like Florida, California and Las Vegas, spring and fall usually offer the best vacation weather.
Is September a busy travel month?
September is a very popular month to travel to the US. In early September, Americans visit family members for Labor Day or plan outdoor activities and adventures for the last weekend of summer. Later in the month, several places around the country are at the peak of fall colors, attracting visitors.
Is September a good month to travel? Fewer Crowds Most summer destinations estimate that crowds will ease once Labor Day passes. This can be an additional incentive for September travel, especially for those who prefer less crowds and limited traffic.
Which month people travel the most?
July is by far the most popular month for summer vacations, with 51% of Americans saying they will take a vacation. August is in second place, followed by June and September.
Is September a busy time to fly?
September is the low season in some destinations. Flights are still cheaper than at other, busier times of the year. Consider outside â travel time. In other words, think about what “the best” means to you.
