October 16 Travel News Review…

The impacts from Covid-19 on travel and tourism can’t be overstated.  During normal times this weekly roundup would be a bit more cheery.  But these aren’t normal times, so for the foreseeable future the impacts from the plague will be front and center.

40+ Airlines Down the Tubes

A CNBC article cites the findings of travel data company, Cirium, that since the beginning of this year 43 commercial airlines have failed.  That number shouldn’t shock you since dozens of airlines go belly-up every year.  However, the pace of failures in 2020 is, not surprisingly, well ahead of previous years.

Government assistance in the form of direct loans, loan guarantees or, in a few instances, nationalization have saved a number of airlines.  Rob Morris, global head of consultancy at Cirium, noted that in the past it has been primarily small airlines operating 10 or fewer airplanes that were at risk.  But this year “…it is clear that the pandemic is impacting larger airlines and causing them to fail,” Morris said.

Read related:  More Airlines Going Under?  and  And Even More on the Current Airline Turmoil

NY Continues Downward Spiral

After almost 100 years serving midtown Manhattan, the iconic 1,015-room Roosevelt Hotel in New York City has shut for good.  According to Northstar Meetings Group, the Omni Berkshire Place, Times Square Edition, Hilton Westchester, W New York Downtown, the AKA Wall Street, Hilton Hotel Times Square and the Courtyard by Marriott in Herald Square have all been permanently shuttered.

At the same time, The Wall Street Journal reports that 20% of hotel capacity state-wide may also get shuttered.  Of course, the impact isn’t just in New York.  Data compiled by Tourism Economics indicates that 11% of pre-pandemic U.S. employment was in the hospitality industry, yet 36% of current job losses are in that same business.

Read related:  October 1 Travel News Recap

2021: The Year Tourism Returns?

A new survey conducted by the Travel Leaders Group and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) finds that 99% of Canadian and U.S. travelers are eager to travel again and 70% plan on vacationing in 2021.  45% of respondents have already arranged their plans (count me in that group) and 54% said they are at least considering travel.

“Consumer uncertainty about the risk of exposure or concerns about being quarantined is a core problem,” stated WTTC’s president and CEO, Gloria Guevara.  “With rapid testing to replace quarantine requirements, enhanced contact tracing and industry-wide standards by sector that can be clearly communicated to the public, we can help alleviate many of those concerns.”

High on the list of destinations are outdoor and/or beach venues such as Florida, Hawaii, Alaska and our national parks.  Crowded spaces including Las Vegas and New York City came in much lower.  About 3,000 frequent travelers were surveyed during September.

Travel Weekly is also reporting a strong desire to travel, especially to Europe.  Citing response to a Travel Leaders Network survey of almost 2,700 frequent travelers in June, Europe was the highest-ranked destination.

Covid-Sniffing Dogs?

Helsinki Finavia Airport has been using specially trained dogs to sniff out infected incoming international passengers.  Sources at the University of Helsinki are claiming nearly 100% accuracy.  Which begs the question, why aren’t we using covid-sniffing dogs here in the U.S.?

The airport has contracted with the WiseNose company to provide the dogs.  If a traveler receives a positive result from a dog, they will then take a PCR test for confirmation.  Assuming the accuracy is nearly perfect, this could dramatically cut down the time going through immigration lines since it is solely focused on those who test positive.

Alaska Airlines Joining Oneworld Alliance

Alaska Airlines’ on-again, off-again relationship with the Oneworld alliance has finally been resolved.  Alaska will join Oneworld on March 31, 2021.  This is exciting.  Alaska already has strong relationships with American and 15 other airlines.  Many of these are also Oneworld members including British Airways, Quantas and Cathay Pacific.

Alaska is primarily a West Coast airline, so joining Oneworld opens up a lot of new possibilities.  The question for me is what will happen to Alaska’s existing non-Oneworld partners like LATAM, Emirates, Icelandair and El Al.  I have nearly 150,000 Alaska miles, so it’s somewhat comforting that they are planning on continuing their current partnerships even though that could change at any time.

Coronavirus Risk Low When Flying

It has long been known that flying is probably the safest form of travel when compared to rail, auto, bicycle and maritime travel.  Now the International Air Transport Association (IATA) is reporting that it is statistically more likely you will get hit by lightning than catch Covid while flying.

“The risk of a passenger contracting COVID-19 while onboard appears very low.  With only 44 identified potential cases of flight-related transmission among 1.2 billion travelers, that’s one case for every 27 million travelers,” says Dr. David Powell, IATA’s medical advisor.

Why is that?  The combination of HEPA filters used in most commercial aircraft in conjunction with airline-required use of face masks.  Studies conducted by the three biggest airline manufacturers, Boeing, Embraer and Airbus, back up those findings.  The results also seem to be confirmed by an article in the Journal of Travel Medicine.

Hawaii Quarantine/Testing Rules in Flux

I am keenly interested in what is happening in Hawaii since I have a trip to Maui booked for March.  Hawaii has had a mandatory 14-day quarantine requirement for everyone flying to the Aloha State.  The governor has announced that travelers can substitute a negative Covid test instead of quarantining, but Kuai has resisted that change.  In addition, multiple airlines have begun to offer pre-flight testing.

Given the amount and sometimes conflicting information related to Hawaiian travel, I will have a dedicated post on this topic next week.

Read related:  Spring Break Trip to Maui