U.S. legacy carriers have begun to experience a financial turnaround this year despite record-high fuel prices, but they have done so largely on the backs of their customers. (To compare the industry’s 2006 performance with 2005’s, see “How to Save an Airline” and “Another Turbulent Year” at www.cio.com/021506.) “The airline industry is coming back,” says John Kasarda, director of The Frank Hawkins Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “Their load factors [the ratio of paid passenger seats to total seating capacity] are up considerably due to an increase in passengers and cutbacks in capacity. And that’s enabled them to raise their prices.” Airline fares are back to pre-9/11 levels, rising 10.3 percent in the first quarter of 2006 from the first quarter of 2005, according to the DoT’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ “Air Travel Price Index.” It was the biggest year-to-year jump since the DoT launched the index in 1995. The airlines also reported their largest domestic profit margin (7.2 percent) since 2000 in the second quarter of this year, according to the bureau. Analysts expect the U.S. airline industry to return to profitability this year, with the exception of Delta and Northwest Airlines, which are still under bankruptcy protection. But even with this windfall, “the legacy airlines have failed to invest in their product,” says Forrester VP of Travel Research Henry Harteveldt. “Today, you’ll pay $1,000 to fly a [traditional] airline between California and Chicago,” Harteveldt points out. But “the airlines haven’t redecorated their planes or put in new seats since Clinton was in office. They’ve taken away amenities. You have to pay $5 to get a crappy sandwich. Now that passengers aren’t paying those $79 each way fares anymore, their patience will wear out.”And, perhaps, Virgin America will step in. Related content feature 10 most popular IT certifications for 2023 Certifications are a great way to show employers you have the right IT skills and specializations for the job. These 10 certs are the ones IT pros are most likely to pursue, according to data from Dice. By Sarah K. White May 26, 2023 8 mins Certifications Careers interview Stepping up to the challenge of a global conglomerate CIO role Dr. Amrut Urkude became CIO of Reliance Polyester after his company was acquired by Reliance Industries. He discusses challenges IT leaders face while transitioning from a small company to a large multinational enterprise, and how to overcome them. By Yashvendra Singh May 26, 2023 7 mins Digital Transformation Careers brandpost With the new financial year looming, now is a good time to review your Microsoft 365 licenses By Veronica Lew May 25, 2023 5 mins Lenovo news Alteryx works in generative AI for speedy analytics results OpenAI integration and AI wizardry for report generation are aimed at making Alteryx’s analytics products more accessible. By Jon Gold May 25, 2023 3 mins Analytics Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe