With no clear end in sight to the Delta variant surge, almost 65 percent of frequent flyers reported that a vaccine passport would boost their confidence in air travel, according to a survey conducted by Xenophon Analytics using the company's frequent flyer database.
Seventy percent of respondents said they expect to travel within the next six months, the survey found, with 72 percent of that group planning personal trips.
By contrast, Xenophon Analytics' 2020 frequent flyer survey found that 60 percent of participants said they had plans to travel in the coming six months, while the 2021 survey revealed that 36 percent of respondents said they have not traveled since January 2020.
Although 90 percent of respondents said they were either partially or fully vaccinated, nearly 10 percent refused to receive vaccinations, the survey found.
"These numbers are encouraging because frequent flyers have high levels of vaccinations," said Xenophon Analytics President David Fuscus.
"However, if the FAA decided to implement a vaccine passport program, nearly one in 10 travelers would be barred from boarding the plane."
On the political front, 98 percent of Democrats said they would be in favor of vaccine passports while 48 percent of Republicans said they would support such a mandate.
"This partisan divide is a problem as it politicizes a public health crisis that we should all be working together to end," Fuscus said.
"But the overall numbers are encouraging. With 90 percent of frequent flyers fully or partially vaccinated and nearly two-thirds supporting vaccine passports, it shows people are ready to take the necessary steps to make flying safer."
Nearly 65 percent of participants are more than 60-years-old, placing them in an at-risk category for severe illness from COVID-19, Xenophon Analytics noted.
The 2021 survey included 2,000 respondents who are members of airline loyalty programs, including Delta, United, Southwest, American, JetBlue, Alaska and more.
The survey was conducted from July 26 through August 12, 2021.
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