Banking On Busy Summer Travel Season, Airlines Add More Flights And New Routes

Looking for a nonstop flight between Appleton, Wis., and Savannah, Ga.? It'll soon be available. Or how about Austin, Texas, to Nashville, Tenn.? Louisville, Ky., to Los Angeles? Or from just about anywhere to Bozeman, Mont.?

Those are some of the new, unconventional domestic routes that airlines are now offering as they try to capitalize on the huge pent-up demand for leisure travel and inch back toward profitability while waiting for business travel to bounce back.

For the bigger airlines, especially American, Delta and United, earning the loyalty of business travelers was like capturing the holy grail, as these road warriors who'd fly tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of miles a year often booked at the last minute and would pay higher fares. But with many business conferences and meetings taking place over Zoom and many corporate travel restrictions still in place, very few of them have returned to flying.

Instead, those who are flying now are more likely to be like Gabe Holmes, who seems almost giddy to be traveling again, while checking in with his family at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport.