RICH THOMASELLI | TravelPulse.Com

Troy Warren for CNT #Travel

Airline bookings fell by almost a quarter month-over-month from July to August, and the low bookings have carried over to September as the surge in COVID-19 cases has caused a fear of the delta variant strain of the virus.

According to an article in the Washington D.C.-based publication The Hill, online customers spent $4 billion on flights within the U.S. in August, down 24 percent from July and 35 percent below pre-pandemic levels.

Through the first 10 days of September, flight bookings remained weak, down 39 percent from the same period in 2019.

The figures come from an analysis by Adobe Digital Insights.

“Historically, July and August have similar consumer spending levels when it comes to domestic flight bookings,” says Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights. “The fact that August came in over $1.2 billion under July is striking when you consider the historical benchmark, and it shows how much the delta variant has shaped what consumers feel about air travel.”

The analysis found that holiday reservations have also taken a hit, with Thanksgiving flight bookings down 18 percent from the same period in 2019.

Airlines have indicated that the delta variant’s continued spread has caused travelers to cancel their flights.

But the amount of passengers being screened over the last week still suggests optimism. According to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the number of airline passengers from Sept. 13-19 was 73 percent capacity of the number of fliers during the same week in 2019.

That’s just about the average it’s been for much of the year, showing no appreciable decline.