Airline bookings have continued to drop for the second month in a row. The combination of rising fuel costs being passed on to passengers, and a pilot shortage causing large amount of flights to be cancelled are giving carriers more leverage with pricing as they have fewer seats to offer. Carriers have been able to raise ticket prices, which has led to fewer bookings but higher income. 

Airfare is 30% higher this May compared to May of 2019, prior to the pandemic, and for the first half of the year, airfare is up 47% alone. Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, said “While some consumers have been able to stomach the higher fares, especially for those who delayed travel plans during the pandemic, the dip in bookings shows that some are rethinking their appetite for getting on a plane.” 

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