Why Twin Cities travelers still don't have a full slate of flights
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Demand for air travel is returning, but it might take a while for the number of flights at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to catch up.
What's happening: Though passenger traffic is rebounding post-pandemic, the number of average daily departing flights out of MSP is still down 20% — 406 as of late September, compared to 509 in October 2019.
Why it matters: Fewer available flights can mean less convenient and more expensive trips for MSP travelers.
State of play: There are a variety of factors fueling the decline, which has been seen nationwide, travel experts told Axios.
- Major airlines are facing a pilot shortage and rising labor costs, limiting resources and making each flight more expensive to operate.
- Some airlines have upgraded to larger aircraft, so fewer flights are needed to accommodate passenger demand.
- Business travel is still down as companies rely on remote technology.
Plus: MSP is a Delta hub, which can deter other airlines from trying to compete by booking as many flights there, national travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt told Axios.
The intrigue: The decline in available itineraries has particularly affected smaller communities, Thrifty Traveler executive editor Kyle Potter told Axios.
- "It's more fuel-efficient to fly a 150-seat plane to a large destination versus an 80-seat plane to Sioux Falls."
The other side: Though the number of departures is down, the number of direct destinations is nearly back to normal. MSP will have 157 direct flights compared to 167 pre-pandemic, MSP spokesperson Jeff Lea confirmed.
- That includes several high-profile routes that have joined or returned to the airport in the last few months, including Turks & Caicos, Dublin, and an additional route to Frankfurt via new carrier Lufthansa.
What we're watching: Continued growth from regional airlines including Sun Country, which added 15 new nonstop routes this summer, could play a role in bringing traffic back — in part by putting competitive pressure on larger airlines to add routes.
- But the ongoing pilot shortage will continue to affect operations across the industry for the foreseeable future, Harteveldt said.