Business travel survey finds H1N1 not hurting much

We have not heard much lately about how business travel may have been affected by the spread of the H!N1 flu virus (aka swine flu). One explanation for that may be in the resuls of a survey conducted by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives of 109 international companies taken earlier this month. It was released at the group's global conference in Prague, Czech Republic.

In a statement issued today, the organization said that despite President Obama's declaration of a national emergency to deal with the rapid spread of swine flu, the vast majority of the companies aren't canceling meetings or business trips because of it. ACTE executive director Susan Gurley said companies have serious concerns about the potential spread of the disease, but they have yet to alter travel plans for the rest of 2009 or 2010.

In the survey, 91 percent of those responding said they were not holding off on planning meetings or conferences. Even more telling, 96 percent said business travelers had not asked to hold off heading out on trips during the flu season.

More information on the organization can be found at www.acte.org.