Airlines
Traffic Data Shows How Southwest Overtook U.S. Rivals
Throughout the first seven months of 2020, low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines consistently flew more than U.S. rivals American, Delta, and United.
Spire Aviation tracked weekly airline flight totals for Southwest (blue), American (red), Delta (yellow), and United (green) from the beginning of January to the end of July. (Chart: Spire Aviation)
Spire Aviation tracked weekly airline flight totals for Southwest (blue), American (red), Delta (yellow), and United (green) from the beginning of January to the end of July. (Chart: Spire Aviation)

By now, there’s little doubt that the fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic has turned the air transport industry upside down in ways that even the most insightful forecasters could not have foreseen at the start of 2020. In different parts of the world, airlines have struggled to maintain a commercially viable level of scheduled service in the face of shifting, and in some regards conflicting, government travel restrictions.