Business Travel Would Be Booming—if Flying Weren’t So Miserable

livemint.com:

Meeting the client in person and on time has become more challenging for road warriors with the rising number of air-traffic delays and full flights. During the first nine months of 2023, more than 22% of flights to or from U.S. airports were delayed, according to data from FlightAware.

That’s up from roughly 17% during the same period in 2019. Airlines also continue to operate fewer flights in 2023 than they did before the pandemic. That has left travelers with fewer options, particularly in the event of delays and cancellations.

Corporate travel members, travel agents and business travelers say they are rethinking how to approach work travel as a result. Spending on business travel should reach prepandemic levels by the end of 2024, according to projections from the Global Business Travel Association. Previous predictions suggested the milestone wouldn’t happen until 2026.

Leisure travel is already humming along at 2019 spending levels, thanks to people planning “revenge" trips they had put on hold. Survey data suggests that the business recovery would happen even faster if not for unpredictable air travel. A third of business travelers reported that they are taking fewer trips than before 2020, according to a survey conducted in August for the U.S.

Travel Association. The survey found that these travelers would take an average of two more trips a year if the complications with air travel improved. Dealing with delays and crowded airports during a business trip can be harder to stomach in the era of Zoom meetings.

“If your daughter is expecting to go to Disney World, you’re going to Disney World. You’ll put up with the delays and the trouble," says U.S. Travel Association CEO Geoff Freeman.