Confidence in travel slides with less than half willing to fly

People are less willing to fly now than they were at the height of the coronavirus lockdown, according to research carried out for the airline industry’s main trade group. Only 45% of those polled in late May and early June said they’d be prepared to board a plane within one or two months of restrictions being lifted, down from 60% in April, the IATA said Tuesday. “If anything, consumers have actually got rather more cautious and we have a majority saying now that they would wait more than six months before traveling,” IATA Chief Economist Brian Pearce said. “The survey is telling us that passengers are rather cautious.” Other indicators also point to an uncertain demand environment. New bookings are down 82% from a year ago, according to IATA, improving only slightly from a low point in April. Reservations are also being made far later, with 41% of people booking within three days or less of their journey last month, compared with 18% in 2019. Demand for long-haul flights remains close to zero.<br/>