“Bring on summer,” said American Airlines as it announced plans to restart more than 55 per cent of its domestic flights in July. Ryanair is offering one-way tickets for as little as €19.99 as it aims to restore 40 per cent of its services next month.
The airlines are rushing to put more aircraft into the skies, but are the passengers ready to fly? Not really. In the UK, 81 per cent of people surveyed in May said that they had no plans to travel outside the country in the next four months, according to UBS Evidence Lab, the bank’s data arm, which has been tracking consumers’ intentions.
Even in countries where coronavirus infections are under tighter control, people are reluctant to head for the airport. In South Korea, more than 80 per cent said in April that they had no travel plans, although a survey in May showed this had fallen to 70 per cent and the number prepared to travel outside Asia had gone up from 6 per cent to 11 per cent.