America is
on the Move — April 2021

While the crisis has extended further than many expected a year ago, it is expected that recovery will eventually come; and that such a recovery will develop first in domestic, short haul, leisure, and VFR oriented markets. The US market seems to be following that pattern.

The US industry as a whole saw passenger numbers in 2020 down by 60% year on year. Operating revenues at the nine largest US passenger airlines fell by 63%, expenses by 35% and total losses reached $45.4bn. But the US market is the largest and most mature aviation market. Its domestic market is huge, in normal times accounting for 75% of the 1bn annual passengers. It should be ripe for recovery as the pandemic crisis wanes.