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LAS VEGAS — The U.S. Travel Association will release a report in April detailing the state of U.S. air travel and making recommendations on how to maximize its growth, CEO Roger Dow announced at the Routes Americas conference here on Tuesday.
The report, which U.S. Travel is calling its Air Travel Blueprint, has been in the works for six months.
“Everything in the travel industry revolves around the air transport system,” Dow said during an interview Tuesday. “If we don’t have enough seats and markets served, then travel slows down. What we’re pushing is proconnectivity, proconvenience, protraveler.”
In a talk at the conference, Dow chided officials in Washington for looking at what he said are the wrong airline industry-related issues, such as regulating seat size.
He said what they need to look at is ways to expand air service and U.S. air travel connectivity. Dow focused on mid-size and small markets in particular. According to U.S. Travel, nearly 60% of U.S. airports have lost connectivity in the last decade as the domestic airline industry has consolidated to the point that just four carriers handle 85% of air traffic.
Along with reducing the number of hubs around the country, major airlines have moved toward larger regional aircraft in recent years, thereby sizing themselves out of some of the smallest markets.
U.S. Travel said that two-thirds of U.S. states have seen a connectivity decline since 2007.
The Air Travel Blueprint will touch on some subjects that U.S. Travel has spoken out about frequently, Dow said. For example, it will suggest that the U.S. defend and expand international open skies agreements. It will also will push for an increase in the $4.50 passenger facility charge cap. Airports use that charge to finance improvement projects.
But the blueprint will also broach less-commonly discussed ideas. Dow said U.S. Travel will recommend that the federal review process to grant antitrust immunity to airline joint ventures be toughened to benefit consumers. It will also address federal rules that prohibit airports from using their funds to promote the cities they serve and the airlines that fly to them.
“It is time to end what I call the politics of subtraction and embrace the politics of addition,” Dow said to the Routes Americas attendees.
The report won’t address the pilot shortage that is plaguing U.S. regional airlines, Dow said, though he added that he expects the problem to grow into the major carriers over the next decade.
Sourse: travelweekly.com
