It’s hard to fully grasp the far-reaching implications of the coronavirus pandemic on the air travel industry so far, as government restrictions continue to decimate passenger demand and force would-be travelers to cancel trips for the foreseeable future.
The clearest way to get a handle on the current state of air travel? Take a look at some of the record-breaking data. We dug through the key numbers of the industry right now to help sketch out a picture. Whether it’s the plummeting amount of fliers passing through TSA checkpoints or the thousands of grounded planes, here are a few metrics that illustrate the coronavirus impact on worldwide air travel.
Air passenger traffic is down 95 percent
The number of passengers taking to the air has fallen drastically in the last few weeks. On April 7, the total amount of U.S. fliers screened by the TSA fell below 100,000 for the first time in the agency’s history. That’s a 95 percent drop compared to the passenger numbers from the same day in 2019, when 2,091,056 people passed through the checkpoints. Experts say the majority of those screened were airline crew members or healthcare workers heading to COVID-19 hot spots.
Fewer than 50 aircraft in Middle Eastern airspace
The region in the world with the most drastic air traffic reduction is the Persian Gulf. Skies are usually congested with wide-body planes serving the three major hub airports there, which then connect to Europe, Asia, and Australia. In recent weeks, Emirates and Etihad have grounded all aircraft (except for a few repatriation flights departing the United Arab Emirates). Qatar continues to fly passengers, while some cargo plans also operate. The result: almost-empty airspace, with fewer than 50 planes in the skies at any one time, according to WorldAware. That’s around 300 fewer aircraft compared with a year earlier.
At least half the planes in the world are grounded
U.S. airlines have collectively grounded thousands of planes, with Delta alone parking 600 jets. In late March, industry group Airlines for America said that about 1,200 U.S. planes were parked. Experts estimate that worldwide, about half of the planes in the world are currently grounded due to COVID-19, analysts at Cowen Investment Bank say.
Delta has donated 200,000 pounds of plane food
After Delta slashed on-board service and shuttered most of its SkyClubs, the carrier was left with an enormous amount of perishable and non-perishable food it would not use. Rather than let it go to waste, Delta donated it to Feeding America’s food banks, hospitals, and workers. Following suit, American Airlines donated 81,000 pounds of its unused food to local food banks through Feeding America.
Only 13 U.S. airports are specially designated to screen passengers
Just over a dozen U.S. airports are designed to screen travelers who have returned from China, the Schengen area of Europe, the U.K., and Iran, per government regulations. Arriving passengers, all of whom must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents (with a few exceptions), must then self-quarantine for 14 days. These include major hubs like Los Angeles, Seattle-Tacoma, and New York-JFK.
Less than 500 flights out of San Francisco
Schedules on all carriers have been slashed, though some flights are still operating. The busiest of the country’s top 10 airports is currently Dallas-Fort Worth, according to FlyPilota. Almost 1,500 flights left there on April 7. On the same day, the quietest hub was San Francisco, with only 463 flights.
Nearly 75,000 passengers have been repatriated by Lufthansa
Repatriation flights have become vital, as citizens stranded by ever-changing travel restrictions try to return home from abroad. Lufthansa Group has taken a lead in operating repatriation flights for Europe. Since March 13, it has brought 74,729 people home on 381 flights, operated from Barbados, Paraguay, Mauritius, and Algeria, among others.
Some major airports have zero passengers
The average foot traffic of a major airport in the world right now is only 20 percent, compared with standard passenger numbers. The most drastic decline in traffic was in Hong Kong, one of the handful of airports in the world where all tourist arrivals, including transit passengers, were banned. It went from 60 percent capacity, according to Wanderlog, down to zero, before rebounding slightly as China eased its travel restrictions earlier this week.
Airlines worldwide are losing $1.6 billion per day
The economic impact on airline revenues during the COVID-19 crisis has been about $1.6 billion lost per day. The aviation industry is typically worth around $825 billion per year to the worldwide economy, according to IBIS World market research.
About 15.8 million U.S. jobs in the travel sector are at risk
These jobs in the U.S. are directly and indirectly supported by the travel sector, according to the U.S. Travel Association. These generate $446.8 billion worth of earnings each year. Travel is the seventh largest employer in the private sector, supporting one in 10 jobs.
TSA has upped the liquid limit for carry-ons to 12 ounces of hand sanitizer
In the wake of terrorist attacks, the global aviation authorities introduced a limit on liquids which could be carried on planes—the so-called 3-1-1 rule. Each passenger could carry one clear plastic bag, no larger than a quart, containing toiletries; no single item within could exceed three ounces. The TSA has loosened this rule regarding hand sanitizer: Until further notice, passengers can bring up to 12 ounces in their carry-on luggage.
Flight cancellations are up 5,000 percent in certain areas
The increase in flight cancellations on the most affected routes currently tops 5,000 percent compared to the same time last year, according to Fly Pilota. Top of the list: any scheduled service between New York LaGuardia and Chicago O’Hare.
Average domestic fares have dropped by almost $150
Fares for those needing to travel have dropped significantly, with $146 as the average saving on a domestic round trip now versus pre-outbreak, according to Upgraded Points. By one estimate, the median price for a domestic round-trip flight has gone from $309 to $163; the greatest savings come on flights out of Tampa, down 55 percent, to an average $115 round-trip flight, and Las Vegas-McCarran, down 54 percent to an average $105.
Roughly 97 percent of flights from the U.S. to China are canceled
The number of flights from the U.S. to many destinations worldwide have been radically reduced as a result of COVID-19. The largest drop-off came in connections between America and India or China. As of April 4, only 3 percent of flights are operating compared with the same day a year earlier.
20 percent of Americans don't plan to travel for the rest of the year
In a recent Upgraded Points survey of 1,250 Americans, one in five said they didn’t plan to travel until 2021 at the earliest, other than for essential or business reasons. The least travel-shy group was the youngest: Among those aged 18 to 25, only 11 percent said they would wait until then to take their next trip, and 20 percent said they would be willing to travel in April, if allowed.
But air travel is starting to rebound in some areas
Although the airline industry is still a long way from total recovery, in certain areas where the coronavirus outbreak is abating, the amount of flights taking off has begun to bounce back. Load factors on domestic flights in China have jumped to 60 percent in certain regions and are growing, according to the International Air Transport Association. Hopefully the same upward trend will occur in the U.S. before long.