Is the trip back? Airports have the busiest days of March 2020

“We have seen some glimmers of hope in the last year, but there have been false hopes,” Mr Bastian said. “But this seems real.”

Airlines stocks rose on Monday. Shares of United Airlines Holdings Inc.

UAL 8.26%

rose 8.3%, while shares of American Airlines Group Inc.

AAL 7.70%

rose 7.7% and Delta shares rose 2.3%.

The pandemic caused travel to stop almost last spring. Travel restrictions and fear of infection kept people at home and away from airports for most of the year: US airlines carried 60% fewer passengers in 2020 than in 2019, bringing passenger traffic to a minimum. level since the mid-1980s, according to the Bureau. of transport statistics.

Major US airlines lost about $ 35 billion in 2020. But on Monday, United and Delta said they could stop the bleeding of cash this month.

It was hard to imagine earlier this year. Airline executives said January and February were even weaker than expected because a large number of cases, rising more contagious variants and new Covid-19 testing requirements for people arriving from abroad had a terrible effect.

Executives have said they remain cautious. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention still recommend travel, and the number of people passing through US airports is still half – or less – of what it was on most days in 2019, according to the Transportation Security Administration.

But the numbers are rising. Airports examined nearly 1.36 million people on Friday and more than 1.34 million on Sunday, two of the busiest days in March 2020.

The number of new cases of Covid-19 is declining, and the distribution of vaccine doses has increased. President Biden said earlier this month that the United States will have enough vaccines for all American adults by the end of May.

Some states, including New York and Connecticut, are relaxing rules that require quarantined travelers.

And there is still a lot to do once people arrive. California, for example, paved the way for Walt Disney Co.

Disneyland and other attractions to reopen at limited capacity if certain test positivity criteria are met. State and local governments – even in highly restrictive states such as Michigan and Illinois – allow restaurants to put some owners back inside.

Southwest Airlines Co.

LUV 1.75%

and JetBlue Airways Corp. They also said Monday that more people plan to travel, book vacations or visit friends and family, helping to reduce expected revenue declines this quarter.

Amy Curtis, who lives in Arizona, has been vaccinated since late February. When she found out over the weekend that her Pennsylvania mother had received the second blow, Mrs. Curtis decided to book a visit.

“It was one of those impulsive things,” she said. “Life is so short – I feel I have to take this opportunity. I don’t know when I’ll be able to have it again. ”

Ms. Curtis said she still doesn’t feel comfortable traveling just for fun or vacation. But others are hitting beaches and ski resorts, according to airlines and analysts. JetBlue sold more package holidays and flights to the hotel last week than ever before, said chief executive Robin Hayes at a conference hosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Reservations to destinations such as Florida and Hawaii, although still declining from 2019 levels, remain better than other areas, according to data from ForwardKeys, a travel analysis company. Domestic bookings were 42% of 2019 levels in the first week of January, but were at 64% of 2019 levels in the first week of March, according to its data.

“Since the beginning of the year, there has been a gradual increase in US domestic bookings each week,” said Olivier Ponti, vice president of intelligence at ForwardKeys.

The recent increase in flight bookings is helping to reduce the amount of money carriers have lost on a daily basis, directors said on Monday. Airlines were on track to record $ 150 million in cash a day in the first three months of this year, according to Airlines for America.

United CEO Scott Kirby told the conference on Monday that the company expects cash flow to be positive, excluding debt payments this month. Mr Bastian also said that Delta expects to stop burning cash this month.

“We know we still can’t put Covid in the rearview mirror,” Kirby said, noting that the airline remains unprofitable and should focus on repaying the debts it has incurred. But he said he expects a steady boom in road travel after a year, when many people have suspended or restricted leisure experiences.

Airline executives have long said that the demand for travel will turn back with the vaccination of several people. While many international borders remain closed and businesses are in no hurry to resume customer meetings and conferences, executives said there are signs that return demand is returning.

“Our last three weeks have been the best three weeks since the pandemic hit,” American Airlines told AAL 7.70%

CEO Doug Parker said.

Carriers are also on a firmer financial footing, having secured three rounds of government aid to cover the costs of workers’ payments, in addition to billions of dollars in private funding. The U.S. bailout signed by President Biden last week includes $ 14 billion to cover salaries and benefits for airline workers in exchange for commitments not to leave or lay off employees until the fall. This brings the total amount of government support for airlines’ pay to $ 54 billion.

American Airlines also said last week that it will raise $ 10 billion by launching its frequent flight program as collateral.

Mr Parker said: “For the first time since this crisis hit just over a year ago, we at American are not looking to raise money.”

Write to Alison Sider at [email protected]