Since the Biden administration’s announcements in November 2021 to loosen up travel regulations, travel rates have skyrocketed and airline workers are facing backlash. With summer vacation, the travel demand has increased while the supply for it remains low. People across the country have been experiencing flight delays and cancellations.  Dr. Christopher Flynn, University of North Florida (UNF) associate professor of management, offers potential reasons behind the recent flying difficulties. 

 For the first time since the start of the pandemic, airfare surpassed 2019 levels and was up 11% in April compared to April 2019, according to the U.S. Travel Association. Dr. Flynn explained that since travel regulations have loosened up, the demand for travel has increased substantially while airport staff faces shortages.

“The reason is most likely driven by the pandemic. A lot of people postponed vacations and travel, so this is the first summer where people are starting to travel more. The influx of people wanting to get out of their homes is resulting in a demand for flights,” Dr. Flynn said, “Because of the lack of travelers during the pandemic, airlines had to cut staff, including pilots, whether that meant early retirement, being laid off, or not getting recertified. It’s a basic economic issue at this point of supply and demand.” 

Other regulation policies within the airline industry are also contributing to flying inconveniences. 

“The shortage of pilots in the pipeline is making it difficult to keep flights on schedule. The pilot industry is highly regulated, and there’s a rule involving the period a pilot can fly without resting, so they can’t just work overtime like other airline workers may be able to,” Dr. Flynn said. 

One recent UNF graduate student has experienced this policy firsthand. Ashlynn Harman was recently stuck at LAX airport for six hours due to flight delays.  

Her flight to Newark, New Jersey, was supposed to depart at midnight and arrive at 6 a.m. Passengers boarded the plane and began to leave the gate when an announcement came on saying there was a maintenance issue and that everyone would be taken back to the airport.  

By this time, Harman said that the issue was that the pilot could no longer fly the plane because of the regulations around the period a pilot could become too fatigued to fly. They were told that they had to wait until another pilot was available, which didn’t happen until 5:30 a.m.  

“I have heard that there have been worker shortages for airlines, so that could be a part of the issue happening. But personally, I would say that my weariness with traveling and airlines has heightened because of my experience,” she said.

 While the sudden high volume of travelers and a low number of airline pilots is one of the biggest reasons to blame for the recent flying inconveniences, airline workers are beginning to voice their concerns and demand change. Many airline companies and workers have been in contract negotiations for quite some time, and federal law allows for workers to strike if mediations fail. 

Earlier this month, more than 1,300 Southwest Airlines pilots in Dallas, Texas, stood in uniform holding signs displaying their complaints about management. The union said in a statement to NBC News that Southwest pilots have been in contract negotiations for over two years with no foreseeable agreements.  

At the Denver International Airport, a group of over 350 janitors representing the airport custodian service, Flagship Facility Services, went on a day-long strike in November 2021 after months of negotiations between Service Employees International Union Local 105 and management. 

Problems with flight cancellations are also being experienced in areas outside of the continental U.S., including Alaska and many parts of Europe. In May of 2022, Alaska airline workers voted to authorize a strike if negotiations for a new employee contract cannot be reached, and flights are constantly being canceled due to staff shortage. Trade unions in Belgium, France, Italy, Portugal and Spain representing Europe’s largest airline, Ryanair, have called for strikes in the near future. 

Dr. Flynn suggested that by the fall, airline supply and demand issues will reach an equilibrium as travel decreases and supply will have a chance to catch up, but as of now, it’s an economic problem that should solve itself in time.

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