Is the AFTM seeing a recovery in business travel?
Thanks to a survey carried out among 272 of our members, the AFTM considers that the bottom of the tunnel was reached in March-April, before a gradual recovery in business travel. The results show that 22 % of travel managers have begun to relax the rules put in place in their company at the height of the crisis. But the situation is not uniform, and some companies experienced the crisis with a delay. As a result, 20 % of them are planning to tighten their travel policy even further.
Have premium Eco classes provided a solution on long-haul routes?
While 36 % travel managers said they wanted to integrate Premium Economy into their travel policy in 2009, in the end only 4 % took the plunge in 2010. These classes arrived on the market too late, with a time lag of 6 months or even a year. Initially, their use was complicated, because no airline could equip all its aircraft at the same time. What's more, you can have your staff travel in Business for only 20 % more than in Premium Economy if you book a ticket in advance.
What about the transfer from first to second class for trains?
On the contrary, we are seeing an increase in first class travel. The switch from air to rail for journeys of less than 3 hours, or even 4 hours, has been offset by the authorisation to travel first class for 32 % of the travel managers questioned. And 51 % allow this under certain conditions. In the end, only 17 % imposed second-class travel only. We are awaiting the new business fares to be unveiled by SNCF at the end of 2010.
