2024 was an eventful year in the US airline industry. It began when a door plug explosively separated from Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft last January, prompting a renewed investigation into the US plane-maker and ultimately a shakeup in its leadership.
The year also brought us news of Southwest Airlines’ shocking open seat walk-away, Alaska’s approval of Hawaiian Airlines’ acquisition, and a wave of new air travel consumer protections passed or proposed by the Biden administration — to say nothing of the industry’s latest chapter. 11 Bankruptcy Filing.
What’s in store in the sky this year?
Here are some of the top US airline storylines we’ll see in 2025.
Will air fares go up?
2024 after travelers feel the sting of airfares amid rush to return to travel after coronavirus pandemic A good change of pace for consumers.
While fares remain stubbornly high in some markets, they have finally moderated in others — particularly in cities like Orlando and Las Vegas, where airlines have increased capacity so much in recent years that stiff competition has forced fares down.
Discounted fares and empty seats on many routes cut into carriers’ bottom lines. As a result, we saw a dramatic series of route cuts from JetBlue to Spirit Airlines, Southwest Airlines and Frontier Airlines.
At the end of the year, many carriers noted that the changes were working. While that’s good news for their shareholders, it could fuel higher fares for passengers in the new year.
We’ll take a closer look at how airfare trends unfold over the coming months and what they mean for spring and summer travel in 2025.
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Read More: Best Time to Book Flights for Cheap Air Fares
The Delta Sky Club clampdown is coming
It’s been over a year since we first reported on Delta Air Lines. SkyMiles program overhaul, including a crackdown on Delta Sky Club access as a way to curb overcrowding.
While the backlash that occurred in September 2023 seems like a distant memory, some of Delta’s tough new lounge access rules still haven’t gone into effect.
But they will soon.
Starting February 1, Delta loyalists who get Sky Club access through a cobranded American Express credit card will face annual limits on their lounge visits.
Cardmembers with Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card And the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card will be limited to 15 Sky Club visits per calendar year.
Card member with Platinum Card® from American Express And The Business Platinum Card® from American Express Limited to 10 annual visits.
Note that all Sky Club visits made within a 24-hour period will count as one visit.
Delta hopes the changes will ease crowding at its popular airport clubs, but the introduction of these stricter policies will certainly require some adjustment on the part of SkyMiles members who have previously enjoyed unlimited access to those lounges.
Read more: Delta unveils new Sky Club in Charlotte, a stronghold hub for American
Delta One lounge portfolio expands
Frequent Delta flyers, on the other hand, should find this 2025 lounge news a little more exciting. The carrier plans to continue expanding its high-end Delta One lounge portfolio this year, starting with a new business-class-only outpost at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) that is expected to open in late spring.
In addition, the carrier has told TPG that it is planning future business lounges at its Atlanta and Salt Lake City hubs, but the timeline for that is a bit unclear.
Delta debuted the Swanky concept last summer and ended the year with three Delta One lounges. New York, Los Angeles and Boston.
The only US airline without prior elevated business-class lounge experience. A legacy carrier, these new amenities easily rank among the nicest lounges you’ll find at any US airport.
Related: More on Delta’s plans for the future Delta One Lounge, Next Sky Club and Premium
Airbus A321XLR to shake up air travel
A new airplane type in the marketplace should shake up the air travel landscape this year.
It actually started in November, when Iberia took over First Airbus A321XLR on transatlantic flight from Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas Airport (MAD) to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS). The Spanish carrier also plans to fly the long-range, narrow-body jet to Dulles International Airport (IAD) near Washington, DC, starting this month.
With transatlantic-capable range and lower costs than larger twin-aisle jets, the A321XLR should allow carriers to experiment with new, more creative routes, including links between smaller US cities and Europe.
Look no further than Aer Lingus’ planned routes from Dublin to Indianapolis and Nashville.
American Airlines expects to receive its first XLR this year as well. The aircraft will begin replacing the four-cabin “A321T” on prime transcontinental routes, but with future deliveries, American plans to deploy the aircraft on new and interesting international routes, the carrier told TPG.
The American flagship comes with business-class suites
As for the American XLR, that aircraft — along with other wide-body jets — will make its way into the airline. Privacy suites for the first time in its business-class cabin.
American XLRs will sport a new lie-flat flagship suite concept, as will new deliveries of its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Also, later this year, American plans to give its Boeing 777-300ER a complete interior renovation with a new suite concept.
Sadly, these changes spell the end of American’s flagship First Cabin.
However, the new business-class suites should soon be an attractive product for American Airlines AAdvantage redemptions.
An added bonus for premium fliers in 2025: American plans to bring its all-business-class flagship lounge to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) by this summer, offering an upscale airport experience for passengers en route to Europe via Philadelphia.
Related: Renovate or Replace? American Airlines considers the future of the top international workhorse jet
United’s ambitious network takes shape
United Airlines has grabbed many headlines in recent years, including a Dramatic Pacific expansion and nonstop service to the likes of Christchurch, New Zealand, and — most recently — Morocco.
There’s more to come in 2025, as the carrier will soon launch flights to Senegal, Sicily, Mongolia and Greenland, expanding the horizons of where a US airline might consider flying.
United sees its ambitious new routes as a boon for its United MileagePlus program and promises more creative nonstop offerings in the future after it acquires its own Airbus A321XLR jets.
Southwest’s new extra-legroom seats begin to appear
While Southwest Airlines’ new assigned seats and extra-legroom seats won’t technically go live until 2026, travelers should start seeing more spacious rows on select Boeing 737 jets by midyear.
Southwest plans to begin retrofitting its fleet with new cabin configurations featuring extra-legroom seats by this spring. Once the jet is serviced, it will rejoin the fleet, meaning lucky passengers may be pleasantly surprised to find seats on certain flights over the next few months (and as the year progresses).
This year, we also expect to learn more about Southwest Rapid Rewards changes that will come with a dramatic shift from the carrier’s half-century open seating policy. Already, TPG has reported that A-List and A-List Preferred status will come with free access to extra-legroom seats in the future.
Related: Best Southwest Airlines Credit Cards
JetBlue (lounge) enters the chat
The carrier is expected to cut the ribbon on the famous Times Square ball now and then when it drops in JetBlue’s hometown next New Year’s Eve. John F. of New York. The first airport lounge at Kennedy International Airport (JFK). A second is expected to follow shortly after on BOS.
JetBlue’s decision to enter the increasingly competitive airport lounge landscape is a strong push to appeal to travelers willing to pay more for premium experiences — a segment of the traveling public that the airline has collectively tried to attract with a flurry of changes at several carriers recently. months
Who will be able to access the new JetBlue lounge? JetBlue TrueBlue members who hold a premium JetBlue credit card (details of which should be announced this year) along with top-tier Mosaic 4 elite status members and travelers flying on a Transatlantic Mint ticket — including those traveling to the airline’s new destination in 2025: Madrid.
However, we’ll have to wait a little longer to see the airline’s just-announced domestic first-class seats. It is expected to join its fleet in 2026.
Frontier’s first class seats fly
Frontier Airlines first-class seats is It’s expected to be available this year, though.
CEO Barry Biffle told TPG that the carrier hopes to have its entire fleet equipped with the new, wider recliners by the end of the year.
Before that, the airline offered a no-strings-attached companion pass to Frontier Miles members who reached Platinum status. It requires 50,000 Elite Status points — or 20,000 points between now and April 30.
Uncertainty at Spirit Airlines
After months of speculation about its future, Spirit Airlines announced in November that it had Filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with hopes of exiting the proceeding by the end of March 2025.
The move comes as the airline faces mounting debt, aircraft engine problems affecting a large portion of its fleet and an overall upturn in recent years (like other ultra-low-cost carriers).
Spirit has laid out a comprehensive strategy to get the company back on track, but has also been the subject of back-to-back merger talks, from multiple rounds of negotiations with Frontier Airlines (one publicly acknowledged in 2022 and another, later in the year, informed via The Wall Street Journal) A failed merger attempt with JetBlue blocked in federal court.
Chapter 11 bankruptcy involves reorganization, so Spirit must continue all operations while the proceedings unfold. Still, the top storyline of the US airline industry in 2025 will center on how Spirit ultimately emerges — assuming it does, in fact, emerge on its own without all (or parts) of the company being acquired by another carrier.
Will the consumer protection push continue under the new administration?
The Biden administration took a tough regulatory stance when it came to the airline industry.
In court, the Department of Justice successfully blocked JetBlue’s proposed merger with American and its proposed merger with American.
Meanwhile, the Department of Transportation launched a major consumer protection push. It forced airlines to clarify (and, in some cases, amend) promises to customers when responsible for significant delays or cancellations. With help from Congress, he strengthened federal refund rules for when a passenger chooses not to fly after a major disruption. He publicly pushed for family seating policies and issued new protections for passengers with disabilities.
Generally speaking, the Trump administration is widely expected to take a less onerous regulatory approach.
It’s unclear what that might mean for individual protections championed by Biden’s Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, some of which Trump’s DOT may undo or choose not to enforce.
As soon as next month, Trump’s DOT could face a decision on how to handle a proposed rule put forward by the Biden administration last month that would require delay and cancellation compensation for passengers when the airline is responsible.
It is also worth watching if the new administration prompts any merger and acquisition activity in the airline industry.
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