As millions of travelers take to the skies over the July 4 holiday period, airlines are grappling with a decline in airfare. According to fare-tracker Hopper, domestic airfare this summer is averaging $265 for a round-trip flight, down 3% from last year and the cheapest since 2021. Airfare in the May U.S. inflation report was down more than 7% from a year ago.
Airlines have pulled their forecasts for 2025, citing economic uncertainty as the reason. Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said that while the airline is stable where it is, there has been no inflection point back to stronger demand. To cut unprofitable flights, airlines are planning to reduce capacity on off-peak days after the major summer travel season.
The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen more than 18.5 million travelers at U.S. airports from last Tuesday through next Monday, with no single day expected to top the nearly 3.1 million travelers that went through checkpoints on June 22, an agency record.
International trips originating from the U.S. have been a strong corner of air travel, but fares have eased for trips abroad as well. International flights from U.S. airports are up 4.3% from last summer, with fares from the U.S. to Europe averaging $817, down almost $100 from last year and on par with 2019. Flights to Asia were going for $1,328 on average in June, July or August, down 13% from last year.
As airlines prepare to report their quarterly earnings, investors will be looking for commentary on any green shoots in demand and further capacity cuts could be viewed positively.
TSA
@TSA
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12h Happy #IndependenceDay!Freedom rings… and so might our alarms if you don’t #PackSmart this long holiday weekend.Whether you’re flying to see fireworks, family, or friends, our teams across TSA are here to make sure that happens safely.https://tsa.gov/news/press/releases/2025/06/24/tsa-expects-over-185-million-people-travel-air-over-busy-fourth-july…
CBS Mornings
@CBSMornings
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13h Travelers will set records this Fourth of July with almost 6 million traveling by air and 62 million traveling by car.While lower gas prices mean more people hitting the road, more flights could mean more delays — with 9,000 delays for international and domestic flights on
Good Morning America
@GMA
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Jul 3 Airlines and the TSA are preparing for a record breaking number of travelers this weekend, with more than 51,000 flights scheduled to take off on Thursday alone.
@sramosabc
has more on the Fourth of July travel rush.
World News Tonight
@ABCWorldNews
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Jun 29 72 million Americans are expected to travel at least 50-miles for the 4th of July celebrations. The FAA is anticipating this could be the busiest week in the skies in 15 years. Severe weather could make an impact with more storms. Faith Abubey reports. http://abcn.ws/PckkZ3X
CBN News
@CBNNews
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11h A record-setting 72.2 million Americans are expected to travel for the Fourth of July holiday this year, the most ever recorded for Independence Day.The increase is fueled by strong demand for summer travel, lower gas and airfare prices, and…MORE: https://cbn.com/news/us/record-breaking-july-4th-travel-collides-dangerous-heat-storms…
Chris Rocheleau
@FAA_Chris
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Jul 2 This week marks the busiest Fourth of July travel period in 15 years, with over 51,000 flights on July 3 alone! Travel demand is strong this year – peaking late July into August – and we want everyone to travel safely and have a great summer. A huge thanks to the thousands of FAA
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