After a year full of surprises and upheavals, the aviation industry is hoping that 2026 will bring something rare: a period of relative calm – but whether that wish will come true is another matter, writes CNN. Travelers can expect significant changes, from long-promised premium upgrades that will finally be rolled out on a large scale, to airports that will become more pleasant places to spend your time, and further mergers that will reshape the industry.
Add in the geopolitical changes and rising cost of living affecting travel budgets worldwide, and the year ahead doesn't look dull at all. Here are the trends that will shape air travel in 2026.
The premium experience takes off
“The premium experience – things like in-cabin products, luxury airport lounges and more direct routes – is the best it's been in decades,” travel deals site Going wrote in its 2026 predictions.
From American Airlines to JetBlue, Southwest Airlines and Swiss Air, long-promised premium products—from lounges to seats—will become widely available, rather than limited to a few aircraft. These investments will provide travelers willing to pay – or redeem points – for more stylish and comfortable seats at the front of the plane.
American Airlines Chief Financial Officer Devon May described December 2026 as an “execution” year for initiatives unveiled years ago. The airline introduced its long-awaited new Flagship business and premium economy seats on a Boeing 787 mid-year and on the Airbus A321XLR in December. But by this time next year, the new deals will be available on dozens of planes, including American Airlines' largest plane, the Boeing 777-300ER, which flies routes around the world.
“We are excited to be a premium global airline. We believe this is where demand trends will continue to go,” said Devon May. The International Air Transport Association, the airlines' global trade group, cited “strong demand” for premium travel in a December forecast, particularly in Asia, Europe and North America.
Since the start of the pandemic, IATA data shows that premium air traffic has been growing steadily, outstripping economy travel. Even Southwest, a longtime supporter of equality, is joining the shift.
The airline will begin selling its first premium product — seats with extra legroom — in January, and CEO Bob Jordan has hinted that more will follow. “We're changing to meet customer needs,” Jordan told CNBC in early December, adding that the airline is “actively pursuing” a network of premium lounges at airports.
Airport upgrades for everyone
Air travel is in the midst of a golden age for airport lounges. Airlines are trying to one-up each other with increasingly stylish spaces, like JetBlue's new BlueHouse in New York. Credit card companies invest heavily to attract new customers. The result is a richer and more affordable airport lounge offer than ever before.
Airports follow suit. Gone are sterile hallways with mediocre shops and waiting areas with rows of identical seats. Local grocery and retail stores, art-filled terminals, varied seating options and, in some cases, outdoor patios have sprung up. Global architecture firm Gensler refers to this vision as the “living room for all.”
The concept recognizes that passengers spend more and more time in secure areas of airports, with improved facilities, design and, inevitably, numerous opportunities to spend money. “The airport area of the future will be much more than a mall itself, it will be a variety of spaces that intertwine and give passengers a little more freedom to choose their own adventure,” said Ty Osbaugh, aviation leader and principal at Gensler. Airports in Denver, Portland and San Francisco already feature many of these ideas.
New York's JFK and Seattle-Tacoma airport terminals, due to open in 2026, are expected to follow suit.
Mergers are changing the airline landscape
Air France-KLM and the Lufthansa Group in Europe, Korean Air in Asia and Alaska Airlines in the United States aim to achieve major merger goals in 2026 — changes that could significantly affect travel. Paris-based Air France-KLM hopes to close a deal for majority control of SAS Scandinavian Airlines next year.
If approved by European regulators, the move would allow for closer integration, potentially combining the SAS EuroBonus and Air France-KLM Flying Blue loyalty programs and bringing SAS into its transatlantic partnership with Delta Air Lines.
Air France-KLM acquired a minority stake in SAS for the first time in 2024. In Frankfurt, the Lufthansa Group continues the integration of the Italian company ITA Airways. Plans call for the merger of ITA's Volare loyalty program with Miles & More in the first quarter and the addition of ITA to Lufthansa's transatlantic partnership with Air Canada and United Airlines by the end of 2026. Lufthansa plans to take full control of ITA by 2027 after acquiring a 41% stake in January this year.
ITA has already announced new flights to United's Houston hub from Rome starting in May, and CEO Joerg Eberhart said United's Newark hub is also on the list for future destinations. In Asia, Korean Air aims to complete the integration of Asiana Airlines in 2026, including combining loyalty programs, aligning programs and withdrawing Asiana from the Star Alliance. In the United States, Alaska Airlines is about to complete its merger with Hawaiian Airlines.
One of the last major milestones for passengers — the migration of Hawaiian Airlines to Alaska's reservation system — is scheduled for April. Other changes remain uncertain. The future of bankrupt Spirit Airlines is still uncertain, with possibilities ranging from closing the company entirely to a potential merger with Frontier Airlines. In Latin America, Abra Group, owner of Avianca and GOL, is awaiting approval to acquire Chilean Sky Airline.
Geopolitics remains an unknown
Decisions by world leaders will again influence air travel in 2026. One notable change is the European Union's new ETIAS travel authorization program, due to be launched in the fourth quarter. Travelers who do not need a visa will need to register in advance and pay a fee of 20 euros, or about $23.
In the United States, the proposed changes could pose additional risks. The Trump administration has suggested that passengers from visa-exempt countries be required to provide social media activity history from the past five years and email addresses from the past 10 years when applying for ESTA authorization. If implemented, the proposal was described by TD Cowen airline analyst Tom Fitzgerald in a December report as “a risk to domestic tourism, particularly for the World Cup”. The new rules could further reduce demand for visits to the US from foreign travelers.
International visits to the United States are set to decline in 2025 to 85% of 2019 levels, according to data from the US Travel Association. The group expects arrivals to rebound in 2026, but only to about 89% of pre-pandemic levels. Another concern, according to Fitzgerald, is the possibility of a federal government shutdown when the current budget resolution expires on Jan. 30. Last fall's shutdown disrupted tens of thousands of travelers as flights were canceled to ease pressure on the air traffic control system.
Delta CEO Ed Bastian said in December that he hoped 2026 would be “a year with a slightly more stable political environment.” Internationally, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and unrest in the Middle East are likely to continue to affect air route maps, adding hours to long-haul travel between Europe and Asia and increasing fuel consumption and ticket prices.
Inflation continues to affect travel budgets
“The industry is facing a complete K-shaped divergence, where the top end of the 'K' (premium cabins, brand loyal passengers and luxury travelers) is growing, while the bottom end (full of budget travelers) is shrinking,” according to the Going report.
Recent data from Bank of America shows that spending by higher-income groups rose 2.6 percent, while lower-income groups saw an increase of just 0.6 percent in November, down two percentage points. The bank cited low wage growth and greater economic uncertainty among the second group for the minimal increase.
That's good news for airlines and all their premium investments, Raymond James airline analyst Savanthi Syth wrote in early December. On the other hand, it suggests minimal growth next year in the economic segment of the market.
Airline growth will slow
All of these factors together mean that airlines plan for less growth in 2026. Or, as Swiss Air CEO Jens Fehlinger said in September, industry expansion will “normalize” next year, after the effervescent post-pandemic period when travel was booming and airlines were scrambling to make up lost ground.
IATA expects passenger traffic to grow by 4.9% in 2026, down from 5.2% growth forecast for this year. This does not mean, however, that the airlines will not launch some interesting new routes. Alaska Airlines will debut in Europe with new flights from Seattle to Rome in April and to Reykjavik and London in May. And United Airlines, which just added lesser-known vacation destinations like Greenland and Mongolia to its 2025 map, plans to add destinations like Santiago de Compostela in Spain and Split in Croatia next summer.
Elsewhere, European carrier Aegean Airlines will expand its network with new direct flights from Athens to New Delhi and Mumbai with an Airbus A321XLR. Iberia will expand its XLR network with new direct flights to Brazil, Canada and the United States from Madrid, and Air Canada will connect downtown Toronto's Billy Bishop Airport with New York's LaGuardia Airport for the first time. (Material produced with the support of Rador Radio Romania)
