Airfares ‘to slump by 10%, particularly on transatlantic routes’
10.06.09
Airfares could slump by a further 10% over the next year as airlines struggle against a dramatic falls in passenger numbers, an airline expert said yesterday. Brian Peace, chief economist of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), advised travellers to ‘shop around’, saying there would be further cuts, particularly affecting transatlantic economy class routes, which have gone down by 34% on average, and European seat prices, which have fallen 31% over the past year.
Mr Pearce said at the association's conference in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: ‘I think fares will fall by at least 10% in the coming year. People should shop around. There are great deals to be had, particularly on trans-atlantic routes. Liberalisation of the route has led to many new airlines coming into Heathrow and that has pushed the price down.’
He also predicted that there were greater bargains to be found on long-haul business-class seats. He said: ‘On trips to Asia we are seeing premium fares fall significantly further than at the back of the aircraft; this is because of the collapse of business class travel.'
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