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By Jennifer Conrad | 07.15.21   | More than 2.1 million people traveled through US airport security checkpoints on July 5, almost twice as many as last year. But airlines are still trying to figure out where travelers want to go—and how much they'll pay to fly there. As Aarian Marshall reports, the pandemic scrambled travel rhythms. In the Before Times, business travelers flew out on Mondays, and airlines knew that demand would increase around major events like music festivals. Now, travel is less predictable. At the same time, airlines are facing a shortage of pilots and flight attendants, in part because some workers laid off during the pandemic don't want to come back. "Airlines are operating with less data, and more uncertainty, than usual, creating a complicated math problem," writes Marshall. "It's not just figuring out where people want to go, and how much they'll pay. It's also making sure that the right-sized aircraft and full, rested crew are in the right place for takeoff." At first, most airlines leaned more on human pricing and scheduling teams. Now Airlines are looking to data sources such as web searches to figure out where demand might be highest. Eventually, airlines may develop internal systems that are more dynamic and nimble than before—but expect some turbulence in the meantime. Read more about the pandemic's impact on airline software. |  | Over the years, WIRED chronicled not-always-successful ways to make air travel more comfortable and less stressful. | |
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