US Airlines May See Weaker Holiday Traffic Amid Shutdown Fallout

Fewer US travelers are due to fly over the upcoming Thanksgiving holidays later this month, with Christmas demand also looking shaky, as a record US government shutdown and concerns about the economy weigh on would-be flyers.

Consumers’ appetite for air travel during the usually busy Thanksgiving week, slowed down significantly as the budgetary impasse lingered on and are now down 3.3% compared with a year ago, according to data released on Monday by Cirium, an aviation analytics firm. That contrasts with the 2% increase seen at the end of October.

The gloomy outlook comes as travel was rebounding from a ...