Summer is now over, but the summer travel boom we’ve experienced these past few months isn’t going anywhere. This summer, we saw surged demand for travel, for which major airlines and operators seemed to have been unprepared. Summer is traditionally our busiest season as our clients look to spend more time away from cities, to destinations like Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard, and Newport, and this season was no exception. As we look to fall, Tradewind and other private operators are experiencing unprecedented demand, so too are the major commercial airlines which has resulted in flight cancellations, delays, and a sense of chaos and disruption to air travel this summer. So what brought air travel to such a state?
The Rising Travel Demand
The fever pitch of current chaos goes back to the start of the pandemic in spring 2020 when global travel came to a standstill. As revenues plunged, many commercial airlines, private air providers, and even the ground-handling companies (who service airports with everything from fueling to catering to air traffic control), did what they could to lower expenses by getting employees off their books through incentives for early retirements. A lot of veteran pilots bit at the opportunity, diminishing the pool from which the industry draws its talent.
It’s a tale as old as time that what goes down comes back up again. Over the few months following the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, commercial aviation experienced its quickest rebound ever, with a labor shortage to go along with it. Should the industry have seen it coming? Probably. However, no one really knew for sure when consumers would feel safe to travel again, and the financial burden of recruiting and/or rehiring pilots and other personnel was too great to commit to in advance.
Meanwhile, private aviation saw a boom of its own starting in late 2020. New and returning clients sought to travel again and private aviation offered what they were after; vastly fewer “touch points” with potential to catch the coronavirus while en route.
Even with widespread vaccine distribution and lower infection rates, the demand for private aviation persists, outpacing pre-pandemic levels, as passengers learned the advantages of flying private beyond health and safety.
Private Aviation’s Surge
Private aviation operators are working hard to meet this demand responsibly, but some have overextended, resulting in overbooking beyond capacity, and leaving clients without a booked aircraft. The motivations for overbooking are strongest with newer operators looking to gain market share from more established players and capitalize on a rare opportunity to do so. Unfortunately for clientele, overbooking often results in panicked last minute schedule changes or a scramble for an alternate available aircraft.
From the start of operations in 2001, the Tradewind policy has been to sell only into the capacity that we have. Our clients appreciate the reliability we provide, and in turn have granted us their loyalty. The strength of our returning passengers paired with the growth of new clients has allowed us to expand our fleet with the purchase of 20 new Pilatus PC12-NGX aircraft which will be delivered over the next four to five years.
Another factor behind this summer’s chaos is that airlines aren’t being very communicative with passengers and are often incredibly difficult to reach. Canceling a flight is incredibly disruptive for a passenger, and new travel arrangements are often better organized person-to-person than on the reservations page of a website. Even clients who pick up the phone find that with the “Great Resignation,” many call centers that service airlines are understaffed, with wait times of over three hours. If a passenger has time-sensitive commitments to family or business, that’s a long time to be uncertain about flights.
The Future of Private Aviation
Tradewind Aviation proves this doesn’t have to be the norm. Over the last few months, our team has staffed up to ensure we continue to provide our superior customer service with a goal of answering questions and requests in near real-time.
My advice for consumers in the private aviation space is to get to know your operator – especially their history and position in the industry today – and then err on the side of consistency, longevity, and self-sustainability.
For the operators, it’s important for all of us to focus on being a service business, and to run our operations more like a boutique hotel than a convention hotel. Clients that are treated well and are cared for will come back for more – regardless of whatever the chaos of the moment may be.