Delta CEO Ed Bastian believes that people are ready to “reclaim” their lives and start traveling again.
Delta CEO Says People Are Ready To Reclaim Their Lives By Booking Travel
Speaking to Lester Holt on NBC Nightly News, Bastian proclaimed:
“As the case counts are coming down … and the vaccinations are starting to grow, people are ready to reclaim their lives. And, we’re seeing bookings pick up. … They’re ready to reclaim that lost period.”
The interview was brought to my attention by Bill Murphy, Jr. of INC. Get past his nauseatingly signature click-bait headline and you get a fair point. Interpreting Bastian’s message, Murphy says:
We shouldn’t just lick our wounds and try to return to some semblance of the lives before.
Instead, we should live with a vengeance. Do the things we would have done, and then some. Make up for lost time, because we’ve all had a reminder of just how little time we get.
If my travel this week is any indicator, we are seeing that already. Packed airports. Packed planes. And a sense that people have settled into a new coexistence with the virus.
It would not only be dangerous, but absurd to look at the latest numbers (still about 50,000 new cases per day in the USA) and declare the pandemic over. Hopefully our aggressive vaccine rollout this year will prevent a third wave, but let’s not forget that all of our waves have followed European waves and case numbers are not trending in the right direction throughout much of Western Europe (and India and Brazil).
But whether we go back into lockdown or not (and frankly, I think there is no more will for further lockdown measures), that feeling of wanting to “reclaim” our lives and start traveling again will not go away. In fact, it will only intensify.
And I think that is a good thing. There are so many discretionary trips I could have taken before eat pandemic but did not. And now I cannot. Air France A380 anyone? Korean Air 747-8?
But it is about so much more than that. My parents are advancing in age. So is my uncle. I want to travel with them again. I want to spend more time with them. Because looking back over the last year, a lost year for me in many respects, those cherished moments with loved ones helped to keep me going and gave me immense satisfaction and delight.
Life is not about self-indulgence, but giving to others. One of the best human avenues for giving to others is via travel.
CONCLUSION
Bastian is right. We are ready to reclaim our lives. The word “reclaim” is absolutely on-point. When it comes to travel, I don’t just expect a rebound, but a full-on surge in demand to make up for lost time. As long we can do that somewhat safely, I’m excited about the opportunity.
image: Delta
Not true for me. I want to travel and need to travel to two foreign countries for good reason but will not, for one country, in 2021. The other country is Canada, which I want to travel to ASAP and which is insane that they are banning cross border travel for Americans. They deem some non-essential travel as essential and many essential travel reasons as non-essential. I am even willing to show proof of vaccination and still quarantine for 2 weeks. Clowns.
Completely agree with this. But I do think it will look/feel different for some time. The first surge will be to visit relatives and family that people have not seen in a year. The next wave will be to fun destinations that are accessible and not overly exotic, Europe and Hawaii as an example. The one area of travel that I think will take years to rebound is to exotic and remote destinations, like Bhutan. Most people I talk to are pretty steadfast in not wanting to go anywhere where there is not easily accessible and world class medical care nearby. Which might make those places for some the sweet spot to try now. No doubt though, I imagine this summer is going to be an absolute zoo for travel. I am not looking forward to my business trips starting again to Europe as I can’t even imagine the pent up crowds come July.
One thing the airlines can do to avoid crowded planes is to put more planes in the skies.
No way. I’m on “quaranteam” until we’ve eliminated the virus completely. Don’t go outside, death lurks around every corner. Stay home, stay safe, save lives. #LockdownForever
I whole heartedly agree, people are wanting to travel and will do so as soon as they can.
How quickly can airline traffic double?
Business and conference travel won’t come back anytime soon. Instead of visiting a company, most will save time and money and do it by Zoom etc (primarily driven by the client). Conferences will of course continue to exist but won’t be back in full capacity until 2022.
If Bastian is going to push for people to get back in the air, don’t we also think it’s time for Delta to reinstate proper meal & beverage service?
Seems a bit of a double standard to promote flying to the public once they’re vaccinated, but still be doing water and cheez-itz only due to “safety”
Amen Kevin!
Kevin- agreed!! Just did a 5 hour BOS-CUN in F, with a plastic cup of wine and crap snack box….
He just forgot to mention his view on business travel. I doubt that will come back and I have friends working in the business travel industry that can show that will not come back anytime soon and when it comes back it will be way different than it used to be.
I don’t need to reclaim what I never declaimed. Altered, yes. Adjusted, yes. However, I’ve discovered new interests and activities which opened my mind up to new experiences so it hasn’t been a loss. THIS old dog HAS learned a few new tricks.
Good for you, Chuck!
We’ve been ready for 10 months. We don’t travel not because of an exaggerated 99.999% survivable cold but because of ridiculous regulations and restrictions that make travel painful. I wish more people in positions of power from airlines to the President (DT sure was played like a fool with vaccines and shutdowns) had stepped up and told the public 10 months ago all the panic was for show (politics) and no one more died in 2020 than died in 2019 of pneumonia or the flu. The CEO puts a nice spin on the eagerness to travel without pointing out the evils that had people arrested for going to church or voluntarily and consensually opening their business.
@ Jackson Waterson. I’m sure the family of the CEO of Texas Roadhouse might wish to speak to you about Covid being a cold. He killed himself this week after suffering debilitating long term effects from Covid. Sorry, people don’t kill themselves after suffering from a “cold.”
@Jackson – piss off with your endless lies, white nationalist
UA-NYC. There’s a sad sack couple.
Delta has a huge problem. They have spent nearly a year telling passengers that flying in a middle seat on their aircraft or competing airlines was unsafe. Delta even hired PhDs and other scientists to produce videos saying so. These videos ran as ads on social media and other outlets. Delta is supposedly going to start booking middle seats at the end of April. This is problematic as the airline says, right now, that middle seats are unsafe. So, who wants to book a middle seat? Delta is going to have to figure this out. If I were Ed Bastian I would come up with a scheme to allow passengers to buy the middle seat for extra space or even a whole row of economy, particularly on long-haul flights, like Air New Zealand and some other foreign carriers do with so-called sky couches.
Ed is right and the public is showing it. There is light at the end of the tunnel for Covid and people are seeing it. They’ve got money and want to get out when they can. I traveled through the pandemic and it is very safe if you wear a mask, still use some caution and common sense. We can travel safely, it is pretty easy and if people are comfortable, they can go. I support it and I think Ed is right.
Everything I’ve read is the the air purification systems on planes make them one of the safer places to be. If people leave their masks on and certainly if they’ve been vaccinated, I see no reason why we shouldn’t be travelling again. For those that want to lockdown forever, they’re free to stay in their homes. The rest of us would like to get back to some semblance of normalcy by the summer.
A lot of people want to travel, and it has become easier in the US with cases dropping, lockdowns ending and many people vaccinated, so demand for domestic travel is coming back. You see that in the crowded planes. International, though, won’t come back until the quarantines and lockdowns end. There will be a lot of pent-up demand for that.