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  • Commercial aviation helps drive more than 10M American jobs and 5 cents of every dollar of U.S. GDP

  • Commercial aviation drives more than $1 trillion per year in economic activity

  • In 2012, U.S. airlines moved more than 48,000 tons of cargo per day

  • In 2012, the value of a kilogram of U.S. merchandise exported by air averaged 121 times the value exported by sea

  • For every 100 airline jobs, some 360 are supported outside of the airline industry

  • Federal taxes constitute $61 – or 20% – of the price of a typical $300 domestic round-trip ticket

  • In 2011, U.S. airlines carried 16 percent more passengers and cargo using 10 percent less fuel than in 2000

  • Domestically, airlines drive 5% of economic activity but account for 2% of man-made GHG emissions

  • From 2000-2011, airlines reduced GHG emissions by 11% while transporting 16% more passengers and cargo

  • From 1975-2011, U.S. airlines and their partners reduced significant noise exposure by 99%

  • Commercial air travel is the safest form of intercity transportation in the United States

  • In the most recent decade, scheduled air service on U.S. airlines was seven times safer than in the 1970s

  • From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines improved the on-time arrival rate from 72.6% to 81.9%

  • From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines reduced the flight cancellation rate sharply from 3.30% to 1.29%

  • Airfares are a bargain: From 2000-2012, U.S. CPI rose 33% while average domestic fare rose just 14%

  • Adjusted for inflation, the average round-trip domestic airfare fell 15% from 2000

  • 2007 domestic flight delays cost the United States approximately $31 billion

  • In 2012, the value of U.S. merchandise exported by air reached an all-time high of $427B

  • In 2012, U.S. exports of air-travel services reached an all-time high of $39.5B, driving a $5.1B trade surplus

  • In 2012, U.S. passenger and cargo airlines spent more than $50B on fuel, averaging 36% of operating expenses

  • In 2012, U.S. airlines posted the lowest annual rate of mishandled baggage ever recorded

  • FAA projects U.S. air travel demand to top 1 billion passengers in 2027

  • In 2012, US airlines flew 83.4 million passengers in scheduled international service - a record high

  • In 2012, the total value of merchandise exported from or imported to the United States by air exceeded $927 billion

  • In 2012, 7.15 teragrams of merchandise was exported from or imported to the United States by air

 Economics - Air Travel Demand

Screen with economic data trend lines

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​Air travel demand is best measured by examining price and volume, the combination of which results in revenues to the air carrier. Its strength can be viewed in absolute terms or relative to the amount of seating capacity in the market or to the size of the overall economy.

 

A4A Economic Reports of the U.S. Airline Industry
Highlights operational and financial results for U.S. passenger and cargo airlines since 1936.

A4A and BTS Monthly Passenger and Cargo Traffic Reports
A4A and BTS reports of monthly passenger and cargo traffic
 
A4A Monthly Passenger Yield (Fares per Mile)
Average price paid to fly one mile, excluding taxes, for A4A sample group

Price of Air Travel Versus Other Goods and Services
Change in prices of U.S. goods and services since 1978

 

Annual Round-Trip Fares and Fees: Domestic and International

 

Annual Operational and Financial Results: U.S. Airlines and World Airlines

 

A4A Presentation: Industry Review and Outlook
A4A charts and graphs review recent trends and current economic forces shaping the U.S. airline industry

 

A4A Projects Increase in Summer Travel as Record Number of Customers Fly Internationally (5/16/2013)
A4A reported overall financial performance improves from first quarter 2012, more people will fly this summer than a year ago, and a record number of passengers will fly internationally.
A4A Opposes Unprecedented Tax Hike on Airline Passengers in White House Budget Proposal (4/11/2013)
A4A announced its strong opposition to the FY2014 White House budget proposal, which seeks to offset the federal deficit by imposing billions of dollars in new and higher aviation taxes and fees on the backs of airlines and their customers.
A4A Announces U.S. Airlines Achieve 83 Percent Passenger Load Factor, Highest Level Since 1945 (3/26/2013)
A4A announced that in 2012 the U.S. airlines achieved an 82.8 percent load factor, the highest level for scheduled service since 1945, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) report released today.
A4A Says Senate-Passed Budget Hikes TSA Passenger Tax, Adds Insult to Injury for Airlines and Customers (3/23/2013)
A4A expressed strong opposition to a provision within the Senate-passed budget resolution, which immediately doubles, and eventually triples the TSA passenger security tax.
A4A Opposes TSA Tax Hike, Calling it a Lose-Lose for Passengers, Airlines and the Economy (3/20/2013)
A4A supported calls for efficiency improvements within the TSA, while strongly urging House Republicans not to punish passengers, shippers and airlines by doubling the TSA passenger security tax in their budget proposal.
Travelers Pay for System, Let It Work (3/19/2013)
A4A President and CEO Nicholas Calio responds to the National Journal Transportation Blog, "It's a Sin to Fly."
U.S. Airlines Help Nation Reduce Trade Deficit by More Than $5 Billion in 2012 (3/19/2013)
A4A reported that U.S. airlines helped the nation reduce its trade deficit in 2012, by exporting $39.5 billion in air-travel services, an all-time high, which helped produce a trade surplus for the fourth year in a row.
Sequester Shouldn’t Affect Air Travel (2/26/2013)
A4A President and CEO Nicholas Calio responds to the National Journal Transportation Blog, "The Airport Canary in the Sequestration Coal Mine."
U.S. Airlines Deliver Record-Setting Year for Operational Performance in Key Service Areas (2/21/2013)
A4A reported that U.S. airlines delivered one of their best years ever for operational performance, built on their stellar safety record, and achieved a narrow profit as expenses grew faster than revenues for the second consecutive year.
U.S. Airlines Delivered Best On-Time Arrival Performance since April 2012 and Best November on Record for Baggage Handling (1/10/2013)
A4A said airlines are continuing to deliver strong on-time performance, including the second best November on-time results ever recorded.
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U.S. airlines are indispensable facilitators of the U.S. economy.

Related Links
Airline Handbook
Aviation: The Real WWW
BTS Upcoming Releases
BTS Traffic Tool
FAA Admin. Fact Book
FAA Forecasts
BLS Inflation Calculator
MIT Airline Data Project
What the Experts Say:
“[The global airline] industry is essential for business, trade and the world’s economic well-being.”

Andrew Drysdale, former vice president, International Air Transport Association Asia Pacific

​Travel Weekly

07/30/2012
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