How airline bankruptcy could impact cruises
It’s been well documented by now that the bankruptcy of American Airlines will have very little immediate impact on flyers but when it comes to cruisers, it could be a very different story.
American is the dominant carrier to Miami, which is the world’s largest cruise hub.
American is operating flight schedules and taking reservations as usual during the bankruptcy process. It should be "business as usual" over the coming months for cruisers who count on the line to get to the nearly two dozen ships that sail regularly out of Miami, Stewart Chiron of CruiseGuy.com told USA Today.
But what about the longer term?
American announced plans to cut back flights to become profitable.
If flights are cut to Miami, they will almost certainly be curtailed to other major cruise hubs such as Fort Lauderdale.
“Down the line, it means a likely reduction in seats (on American planes), which could impact the ability of consumers to get to ships," Mike Driscoll, editor of Cruise Week, told USA Today.
The most likely shake out is that flights could be cut from less profitable US cities such as LA.
That, in turn, could lead to higher cruise fares.
The only question now is how much will be cut and where.
By David Wilkening
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