Tuesday, July 07, 2020

I Wonder ...

... how much paid-for travel demand is on the airlines' books, and what the effect of that will be on seat availability when most people decide that they need to -- and that it's safe to -- travel by air again?

When one airline canceled my May flight to Austin (for what was supposed to be the 2020 Libertarian National Convention) and I canceled the return flight with another airline (no need to fly back if I wasn't flying there), I ended up with some future flight credit (maybe not enough to ever redeem -- the flights were insanely cheap, and on airlines I don't normally use).

Tamara and the kids were going to fly this week, but decided at the last minute to drive instead, to make it less likely that they'll get caught up in some sudden and stupid interstate quarantine change. So now we've got a nice balance with the airline I usually fly on from that cancellation.

Public panics tend to end as suddenly as they begin. When this one ends, I expect that seat demand will quickly outstrip seat supply, meaning my credited balances won't go as far, if I can find a seat at all. For a little while, anyway.

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