When it comes to summer travel plans, people think about going to the West Coast for sunny California, or South to places like Florida for the beaches. But what people should be planning for the summer is the chance to see the East Coast. From gorgeous mountain views to stunning ocean coastlines, the East Coast has more to offer than you could imagine. And thanks to the FAA, air travel to get there will be a lot easier.
Summer travel ramp-up
With everyone in the country and beyond also scrambling to get to their favorite summer-time spots, plane tickets jump in price. We expect more delays, possibly getting bumped from our flight, and at least one layover. For the East Coast, add in the skyrocketing fuel prices, and the fact that we are still in a pilot and flight attendant shortage, and those prices only go up.
But the FAA has been working on a plan to help. For the last seven years or so, they’ve been planning how to rearrange the flights to make the most sense distance-wise. This would result in less time for all of us in the air, and the planes themselves needing less fuel. Think of when they build a new on-ramp, so you don’t have to drive down seven miles for the next one. Shorter distances, fewer fuel-ups. We all get gas, so we know how this works.
The new routes
- Save passengers 6,000 minutes in the air
- Will skim 40,000 miles off for the planes, distance wise
Now, the maps look like a first-grader was asked to guess how we would get from here to there. You just need to know the stand-out bits, such as how much time and money you’ll save when you fly. Plane passengers will be out of their seats and enjoying their destination for 6,000 extra minutes a year. That’s a potential 100 hours back on our vacations every year. Yes, please.
With the planes needing to be in the air 40,000 miles less than before, think of the fuel savings that brings. Imagine getting 40,000 miles back on your car. We know that’s not apples to apples, but you could imagine the overall impact that will have?
What else the new routes trigger
But what else could that mean for your summer travel plans? More perks that will make you want to book that flight sooner.
Benefits of the enhanced air highways
- Safer sky highways
- More options when the weather doesn’t agree
- Fewer delays
The streamlined routes will create less confusion in the sky, making it safer to fly. And if you don’t know, East Coast weather is never a sure thing, so when that weather does throw a wrench in things, pilots will have plenty of options to work around it and still get you to your destination on schedule.
We all want fewer delays and shorter flights, and the FAA is making sure the East Coast delivers. We recommend the coastline of Maine, or the welcoming Rhode Island views.
