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Did you know that airlines are cutting back on seats in 2024? Fewer planes might be flying to your city. See why elite status and credit cards can help. [[{“value”:”
Image source: Upsplash/The Motley Fool
Air travel has been through a lot of turbulent times in the past few years — from the pandemic shutdowns and border closures, to post-pandemic “revenge travel” and soaring demand for airline tickets. But now the airlines are trying to find a new normal and adjust to customer demand. A new study from Bloomberg shows that for summer 2024, many U.S. airlines are cutting capacity — reducing the number of available seats and flights on airline routes.
When airlines cut capacity, fewer flights are available per day out of a particular airport. That means airfare prices might go up — and perks and upgrades might get more expensive. This makes having elite airline status more valuable, since it can be easier to get upgrades on scarcer flights.
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Let’s look at the cities where elite airline status might mean the most in summer 2024 — and how you can adjust your travel plans.
Where airlines are cutting capacity the most in summer 2024
A recently published study in Bloomberg found that airlines have reduced U.S. capacity by about 6.2 million seats for June-August 2024. And some cities — mostly in the South and Southeast — are getting hit the hardest.
Here are a few of the cities that have seen the biggest reduction in airline seats for June-August 2024:
Although the biggest airline capacity cuts are happening in smaller cities, larger airports are also being affected. Bloomberg’s research found that Delta Air Lines has cut 580,000 seats from Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Routes between New York and Miami have also seen big reductions in capacity.
Why is this trend important for airline credit card customers?
On one hand, the 2024 summer reduction in airline seats is not terrible news for airline customers. Airline prices have not gone up; the airlines seem to be trying to better align their available planes with the routes that have the highest demand. Airline ticket prices are actually going down in summer 2024. Bloomberg cited data from Hopper which found that the average domestic U.S. airfare for summer 2024 is about $305 — down from $324 in summer 2023.
But if you have elite status, travel credit card points, or extra frequent flyer miles, you might want to use them for summer 2024 travel from these lower-capacity cities. Upgrades might get scarcer or become more expensive. If you’re flying in or out of any of the smaller cities on the top 10 list shown above, having the best airline credit cards or elite status perks might help you get a better seat in summer 2024.
Bottom line
When airlines cut capacity, there are fewer planes flying and fewer available seats. This could make business-class upgrades and other in-flight perks a little more expensive and hard to find. For those reasons, having elite airline status could make a bigger difference in some of the cities that have seen the biggest cutbacks in available airline seats for summer 2024. The best airline credit cards can also give you a free checked bag to free up legroom on the plane.
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