US: Airlines see glimmers of demand, a turning point in the pandemic

US airlines are starting to see an uptick in demand as the summer vacation season approaches, but a full recovery appears far off. Southwest said Tuesday that new bookings are now outpacing cancellations, a turning point in the coronavirus pandemic that has devastated air travel demand. The carrier has logged a “modest improvement” in demand and new bookings for next month. Southwest plans reduce its capacity by up to 55% next month from June 2019 and said that those flights will likely be between 35% and 45% full. “The revenue environment remains uncertain and may require additional capacity reductions depending on passenger demand,” it said in a filing. The uptick is showing up at airports, too, but demand is still far from last year’s levels for this time of year, when it generally rises. In the first 18 days of May, 3,419,717 people passed through security checkpoints at US airports, according to the TSA, down 92% from a year ago but better than last month. The first 18 days of April showed a more than 95% decline on the year, TSA data shows.<br/>