Summer travel 2024: record air travel, fewer cancellations, better airports, more protection for passengers

The flight cancellation rate since the beginning of the year is only 1.4% during a summer tourist season that is breaking all records.

WASHINGTON – Despite record levels of air travel this year, figures from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) show that the flight cancellation rate for the first half of 2024 was just 1.4%, nearly the lowest rate in more than a decade. The latest airline data reported to the US Department of Transportation shows that weather continues to be the leading cause of flight cancellations.

On June 23, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screened more than 2.99 million people in a single day at U.S. airports, the highest number of air passengers screened by the agency in its history. The TSA expects to screen more than 32 million people this Independence Day travel season, which is a 5.4% increase from last year. At the same time, airfares are down 6% from last year and are lower than pre-pandemic prices.

“This year’s record air travel is another good sign for our economy as more Americans take to the skies,” he said. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “To prevent travel disruptions, the Biden-Harris administration has taken historic steps to modernize airports and expand passenger protections for a smoother travel experience.”

President Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure bill will invest $25 billion in America’s airport infrastructure over five years. This unprecedented investment will not only improve runways and air traffic control towers, but also add gates and increase flight capacity, modernize baggage systems, replace passenger boarding bridges, reconfigure security screening areas, improve security, and much more to finally give America world-class airports and meet projected demand for decades to come. This week, the Federal Aviation Administration announced $289 million in airport infrastructure grants in 40 states and an additional $1 billion in funding available to modernize airport terminals. Thanks to the bipartisan infrastructure bill, nearly 200 terminal projects are already under construction to modernize America’s airports and make air travel safer and smoother.

The Biden-Harris administration has taken historic steps to improve air passenger rights and airline oversight:

• Created a new rule requiring airlines to provide automatic cash refunds to passengers when due.
  • The rule specifies that airline passengers are entitled to a refund when their flight is canceled or significantly changed and they no longer wish to take that flight or rebook, when their checked baggage is significantly delayed, or when additional services they paid for, such as Wi-Fi, are not provided. The rule also requires that refunds be automatic, prompt, in the original form of payment, and for the full amount paid. Airlines must comply with the rule by the end of October.
  • The final rule’s provisions on airline refunds were strengthened by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 that President Biden signed into law on May 16, 2024.
• A new rule has been created to protect consumers from surprise and costly airline fees.
  • This new regulation makes the air travel market more competitive by requiring airlines to disclose essential additional fees, such as change fees and baggage fees, in advance to help consumers better understand the true cost of air travel. The regulation also prohibits “bait and switch” advertising tactics and requires airlines to clearly inform passengers in advance that a seat is included in the price of their ticket. This regulation is expected to save consumers more than half a billion dollars each year.
• Launch of the flightrights.gov dashboard, After which the top 10 U.S. airlines have guaranteed rebooking and free meals when an airline issue causes a significant delay or cancellation. These are new commitments that airlines have added to their customer service plans and that the DOT can legally enforce through enforcement action.
• Obtained nearly $4 billion in refunds and compensation owed to airline passengers – including more than $600 million to passengers affected by Southwest Airlines’ 2022 vacation crisis.
• Airlines fined nearly $170 million for violating consumer protection rules since President Biden took office. By comparison, between 1996 and 2020, the DOT collectively issued less than $71 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations.
• Establish a system to increase the Ministry’s capacity to review complaints relating to air transport services by partnering with a bipartisan group of state attorneys general, which will help hold airlines accountable and protect travelers’ rights.

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