Summer Travel is in Full Swing, For Better Or Worse
Summer is upon us, the country is re-opening, and we are starting to experience a version of normal life. To no one’s surprise, travel was booming over Fourth of July Weekend, the first national holiday since the widespread distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. Feeling cooped up after a year of isolation, flyers rushed to their holiday destinations.
In fact, the number of travelers that passed through TSA checkpoints on Friday, July 2, surpassed that of the same day in 2019. In 2020, at the height of the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, TSA recorded one-third the number of travelers that we saw a couple of weeks ago.
We don’t see the rate of travel decreasing anytime soon. According to a recent national survey, over two-thirds of Americans are planning a trip this summer. The increase in volume also brings some headaches for flyers. Over the busy holiday weekend, packed airports resulted in overwhelming delays and cancellations that plagued travelers nationwide. Commercial airlines such as American and Southwest were forced to cancel hundreds of flights as staffing shortages struggled to keep up with surging demand.
Many travelers opted to skip the lines and fly private. Over the Fourth of July, private jet flights climbed 44% from their 2019 levels. Private flyers show up 15 minutes before departure, skip the long security lines, and grab their bags straight from the aircraft after landing. That means no snaking TSA lines, no juggling bags in one hand and boarding passes and IDs in another, and no nervous waits at baggage carousels.
A recent survey of private flyers indicates that the higher prices tag was worth it. According to the survey, 97% of prior private flyers will fly more or the same as they did pre-COVID, and over 99% of new private flyers indicated they would continue to fly private after the pandemic is over.
Dan Morrison, Fly Louie’s head of business development with two decades of industry experience, is already looking ahead to Labor Day. “Flyers should book their upcoming holiday trips as soon as possible to ensure the best options and pricing,” said Morrison.
With competitive pricing and a wide variety of aircraft thanks to the 2,000+ aircraft in the Fly Louie Alliance, Fly Louie is a great option for travelers looking to book a private aircraft.
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