Posted: Mon Dec 14, 2020 11:50am
Worldwide air travel is still 90% down on pre-Covid (ironically, apart from in China where domestic flights have almost returned to normal).
Airlines have clearly had to focus on being as efficient as possible and are trying to maintain routes where they can maximise the occupancy in their planes. As Alicante serves high population and high visitor areas such as Benidorm and Torrevieja, in addtion to being within about 90 minutes of most of the rest of Murcia, it makes more economic sense for them to try to fill these flights instead of running low-occupancy flights to Corvera.
Although the low cost airlines (with the honourable exception of Jet2) have been slow to provide refunds etc in what has been a devastating time for the industry, at least they have kept operating, albeit with a reduced service, and kept their prices down at accessible levels. The alternative would be to fly nearly empty planes, but charge considerably more for the seats.
In my opinion, the biggest concern at the moment is whether, due to Covid, the EU moves to ban UK citizens travelling to the EU (as it does for almost every other country in the world, with just a few exceptions) and, if so, will Spain then create an independent air-bridge with the UK (probably supported by PCR tests).