20/07/2023
Hit The Road Jac will be working hard to secure affordable Adventures for 2024. Due to the increased amount of travel in 2023, vendors (hotels, airlines, etc) are able to get full price and do not have to offer any discounts. They dress it up to make it look like a good deal, but.....
HTRJ also honors unions and will not cross picket lines. Travel is a bit crazy this year, but as the saying goes......"This too shall pass”. We’re not giving up. So when the dust settles, we’ll be back on the road again.
We’ll also begin posting articles regarding travel to keep you aware of what’s going on in the industry, check it out:
Why Are Flights So Expensive Right Now?
Gunnar Olson
April 19, 2023
Travelers looking for flights for a trip this spring, summer, and beyond are confronting the same problem: Flights can be really expensive right now – in some cases, we're seeing some of the highest airfare in years. But that's not the full story…
It's been a rude awakening for travelers after two-plus years of unbelievable pandemic bargains: Think sub-$50 domestic flights on major carriers, $200 roundtrip flights to Europe, and even a $63 flight to Chile and back. But what's gone around has come back around as travelers face skyrocketing fares for many domestic flights and international trips, too.
Those eye-popping prices bring up a slew of questions. Why are flights so expensive right now? Can travelers expect flight prices to rise more this year? When will flight prices go down? Or will they at all?
Are Flight Prices Going Up?
Yes. That's undeniable. You've no doubt seen some eye-popping prices on flights lately. It's not just you. Data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index shows a 17.7%% increase in airfare from March 2022 to this March. That means right now, on average, Americans are paying almost 20% more for flights than they did a year ago. That year-over-year number has been even higher in previous months.
So why are flight prices so high right now? It's a concept you're already familiar with: Supply and demand.
After it nearly evaporated in 2020, demand for travel is fully back in 2023 and isn't going anywhere. In fact, it might be higher than ever. That's good and bad news.
When demand disappeared at the start of the pandemic a few years ago, it forced airlines to cut the supply of flights until it returned. Airlines downsized their staff, dropped routes, and reduced flight frequencies, running just 20% of their normal operations or less.
With next to no appetite for travel, they slashed airline tickets to unthinkable lows to generate whatever sales they could, like this: A flight from Atlanta (ATL) to Santiago (SCL) that normally costs $900 or more … for just $63 roundtrip.
Also contributing to this is a labor shortage. As you can see, airline staffing dipped to near-historic lows in 2020 and 2021. In the last year or two, airlines have gone on an unprecedented hiring tear over the last year to try to meet that rising demand. But with all the training required and a younger, more inexperienced workforce, a higher headcount isn't enough for them to do so.
Combined with ongoing pilot shortages and difficulty replacing the planes they retired, that staffing mismatch has been a major factor in rising airfare. The supply of flights has been unable to keep up with the demand to fly.
