Average summer air fares out of Atlanta are down significantly compared with last year, including a 30 percent drop in average fares to Europe, according to a travel web site.
Microsoft's Bing Travel, which has replaced Farecast.com, showed in an updated forecast that fares for the summer have further declined from earlier this year.
That's good news for consumers, but for the airline industry, it's a big financial challenge. The airline industry faces an economic meltdown with "no modern precedent," according to the International Air Transport Association. Delta said industry passenger revenues in the first four months of 2009 declined nearly 20 percent year over year.
Average summer fares for travel to Europe from Atlanta are down to $1,045, compared with last year's $1,493.
Tom Parsons, founder of another travel Web site, Bestfares.com, said certain fares from Atlanta to Europe are down as much as 40 percent, but some Europe flights are even cheaper out of other cities in the United States. And this year, some cheaper fall fares are available for flights as early as mid-August, Parsons said.
The average domestic summer fare from Atlanta is down 20 percent to $288, compared with $360 last year.
AirTran Airways, which has its largest hub in Atlanta, has been "pretty aggressive with their fare sales," Parsons said. "It's been nonstop."
Averages fares from Atlanta to Mexico and the Caribbean are down 26 percent.
Not all fares are down. Parsons advised travelers to be wary of checked bag fees and other charges, and to confirm flights in case of schedule changes.
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