It’s been another eventful year for U.S. air travel. Just five days into this year, a door panel of an almost-new car was blown off boeing company 737 Max, by Alaska AirlinesThe planes crawled out of Portland, Ore., after sunset, sending the plane maker back into crisis mode and delaying deliveries of new planes for months.

Two weeks later, a federal judge blocked JetBlue AirwaysThe planned acquisition of Spirit Airlines would leave the smaller, battered budget airline to fend for itself. The Struggling Spirit Finally Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy bankruptcy protection November.

The dramatic year also included an activist campaign by one of America’s most cautious airlines, a technology meltdown that stranded hundreds of thousands of travelers during the summer travel rush, and the first-ever presidential election under President Barack Obama. America’s first major airline merger.

FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker announced that he would step down January 20, the day the president is elected, approximately one year into his five-year term Donald Trump Since its creation, the key agency that oversees everything from aircraft certification to U.S. airspace has once again lost its leader. Airline CEOs have been calling for more air traffic controllers and investment in air traffic technology.

At the same time, airlines are competing over who can be the most “premium” and most profitable, with cabins near the front of the plane becoming more popular with travelers (sorry to those looking to pay) Free upgrade). Top Two Contenders – Determined delta and challenger united — generate most of the industry’s profits and their stock prices hit records, while smaller airlines favor roomier seats and launch higher-end credit cards.

Airlines have been taking a timid approach until the industry cuts a glut of U.S. flights that has driven down fares. But the international tourism boom Entering the off-seasonand shows no signs of slowing down. Through it all, overall demand for air travel is breaking records and CEOs are optimistic about next year.

Here’s how they’ll fare in 2024:

America’s most profitable airline struggles to recover from July 19 crisis mass strike Power outage kills hundreds Microsoft The Windows machine is offline. Delta Air Lines lost more than $500 million, stranded thousands of passengers, and canceled the most flights in 2019. Still, the airline’s shares hit a record high this month.

CEO Ed Bastian told CNBC last week that demand looks to be strong heading into 2025. The airline has been beefing up its premium offerings for high-paying customers, such as three new Delta lounges dedicated to travelers flying in its namesake, top-of-the-line cabin. New York, Los Angeles and Boston opened this year, with more stores in the pipeline.

It’s a sign of Delta’s continued focus on high-end travelers and its “premium” brand, which like Spirit budget travelhas become such a punchline about high-end travel that “Saturday Night Live” sketch Last week, Martin Short played a Delta employee who blocked actor Paul Rudd from entering the coveted Delta Sky Club, saying his name “sounded bad.”

Delta isn’t launching a streamlined business class product as some analysts expected at its November investor day, but the new lounge could ease crowding in Delta’s popular Sky Club.

Can it beat Delta? It’s unclear whether Magnolia Bakery banana pudding will be enough to get more travelers to buy first class, but United is making other big moves, such as expanding its network to include more premium leisure destinations Mongolia to Greenland to Northern Spain Next year will attract customers looking to get off the beaten path to traditional U.S. aviation destinations.

The airline’s performance this year has investors excited and it has set lofty goals for next year. Its shares more than doubled in 2024, making it the best-performing airline.

United Airlines is introducing newly equipped narrow-body aircraft to its fleet with new interiors, seatback screens and Bluetooth connectivity. it declares a Wireless Network Partnership powered by Elon Musk– owns SpaceX’s Starlink and, following Delta Air Lines and JetBlue Airways, will not charge for the service.

Chief Executive Scott Kirby said earlier this year that the airline would not count on Boeing’s yet-to-be-certified 737 Max 10 and would consider more Airbus planes as an alternative, but he backed the plane’s construction The company’s new CEO. Kelly Ortberg.

Say goodbye to open seating. The Dallas-based airline shocked loyal and frustrated customers alike in July when it said it would begin operations. Assign seats and updated its livery cabin to add a few rows with extra legroom to boost revenue. It’s the airline’s biggest strategic change in nearly half a century.

While Southwest said it had been working on the changes for months, the airline announced them after activist hedge funds. Elliott Investment Management Holds a roughly $2 billion stake in the airline and has pushed for changes, including the ouster of CEO Bob Jordan. Former CEO and former chairman Gary Kelly survived the race despite agreeing to retire. In a truce, Southwest appointed six new board members in October, including five nominated by Elliott.

American Airlines expelled it Business executiveIn May, Vasu Raja’s sales strategy of eliminating travel agents in favor of selling directly to business travelers backfired when the airline suddenly slashed sales guidance.

The company’s outlook has improved, with executives optimistic about demand through the end of the year and into 2025. The company signed a new agreement credit card transactions with its partners Citibankand will end its relationship with its co-branding partner Barclays, a holdover from American Airlines’ 2013 merger with US Airways.

Comedians love to hate the budget airline, and problems have snowballed this year, starting with a federal judge block In January, Spirit Airlines was acquired by JetBlue Airways.

Spirit faces other problems after the merger closes: surging labor and other costs after the pandemic, fierce competition in the domestic market, surging demand for travel to areas where it doesn’t serve, such as Italy and Japan, and Pratt Airways’ discount Turney’s engine recall had a huge impact on Spirit Airlines, grounding dozens of planes.

As the refinancing deadline approaches and a large amount of capital is lost, Spirit files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. bankruptcy protection Last month, it became the first major U.S. airline to do so since American Airlines in 2011. It is expected to emerge in the first quarter, but whether it will try again to merge with other budget airlines remains an open question border.

The airline has changed its long-standing business model of charging low fares and adding other fees such as seat selection to offer more bundled options during the summer.

While Spirit Airlines’ stock was delisted after it filed for bankruptcy, JetBlue Airways is moving forward after a judge blocked its takeover plan. Here are the highlights: cost cutting and return to profitability.

new CEO Joanna Geraghty Former commercial executive Marty St. George, who returned to the airline as president in February, laid out the JetForward strategy to refocus the airline, which has grown on its high-end gear post-pandemic too many loss-making routes. The aircraft was deployed to the wrong place.

The airline announced earlier this month that it would update some of its aircraft Domestic business classto complement its aircraft with premium Mint business class cabins.

As of Tuesday’s close, the company’s stock price has risen more than 40% this year, ranking first S&P 500 Indexperformance. Investors were pleased with its latest earnings update, which showed better-than-expected revenue.

Months later, the company refocused on its nearly $2 billion acquisition of troubled Hawaiian Airlines, a merger that passed antitrust regulators this summer, marking the beginning of first merge Since Alaska Airlines acquired Virgin America in 2016, it has become one of the major airlines in the United States.

Alaska has posted solid profits so far this year, with its stock price soaring more than 70%, nearly three times the premium to the broader market. Earlier this month, executives painted an ambitious picture for investors, announcing global expansion The combined airline will include nonstop service on wide-body aircraft to Europe and Asia from Seattle (whose biggest competitor is Delta Air Lines).

A first-rate frontier? The airline has turned a profit again and is trying to move upscale, planning to equip its planes with Domestic first class seats.

It also plans to offer more packages that include seat assignments, baggage and no change fees.

Chief executive Barry Biffle said the airline expected to return to double-digit profit margins by mid-2025, attributing the recent improvement to a series of network changes such as reducing Tuesday, Wednesday and Days with lower demand like Saturdays and crowded flights to markets like Florida and Las Vegas.

loyalty travelIt has struggled to get into the hotel business and this summer said it would conduct a strategic review of Sunseeker Resorts in Florida. The company added this fall that it was approaching a capital partner for the property north of Fort Myers.

Main business, low cost Allegiant AirNew CEO Greg Anderson told investors this fall that an inflection point had been reached and peak demand was high. The airline updated its fourth-quarter guidance in early December, which beat analysts’ expectations.

The airline’s profits are enviable, especially for a low-fare airline, and it has benefited from cargo contracts with: Amazon Deutsche Bank airlines analyst Mike Linenberg said this month that competitors were cutting capacity from its headquarters in Minneapolis.

“sun countryDiversification of revenue provides the company with an economic moat, allowing the airline to remain profitable even in its most volatile and competitive quarter since the pandemic,” he wrote in a Dec. 11 note .

The airline has successfully adapted its flight schedule to the seasons, adding services to warmer destinations during the winter.

Disclosure: NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC and NBC, which airs “Saturday Night Live.”