{"id":86411,"date":"2022-06-15T20:52:59","date_gmt":"2022-06-15T20:52:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mytravelleader.com\/?p=86411"},"modified":"2022-06-15T20:52:59","modified_gmt":"2022-06-15T20:52:59","slug":"hopper-airfares-fell-for-the-first-time-this-year-travel-weekly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mytravelleader.com\/transport\/hopper-airfares-fell-for-the-first-time-this-year-travel-weekly\/","title":{"rendered":"Hopper: Airfares fell for the first time this year: Travel Weekly"},"content":{"rendered":"

High prices could finally be denting air travel demand.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A Hopper analysis found that budget domestic airfares dropped for the first time this year during the past month. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, most mainline U.S. airlines have\u00a0trimmed their third-quarter schedules, moves that Bloomberg Intelligence aviation industry analyst George Ferguson interprets as a response to weakening demand.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“U.S. and European carriers are cutting capacity through the summer as demand for flights throttles back on higher fares, with inflation straining consumers and crimping spending power,” Ferguson wrote in an analysis late last week.<\/p>\n

According to Hopper, budget domestic fares are currently averaging $390, down from $410 a month ago. Hopper defines budget fares as those that are lower than 90% of the fare quotes it tracks.<\/p>\n

The decline, wrote Hopper economist Hayley Berg, is in line with normal seasonal patterns. Domestic fares typically peak in May or June before declining ahead of the off-peak late-summer and fall seasons. Still, domestic fares are 18% higher than 2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Americans should expect prices to remain higher than usual as key factors driving up airfare remain in flux,” Berg said. “Jet fuel, which typically accounts for approximately 30% of an airline’s operating costs, remains more than double the price at this time in 2019. Airline capacity also remains at or below 94% of 2019 levels, as carriers have been slowly rebuilding their networks and workforces.”<\/p>\n