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

Glossary

Events section: man under wing refueling a plane

The ATA glossary includes a list of commonly used aviation terms/acronyms and definitions.

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capacity - The maximum number of aircraft, cargo or passengers which can be accommodated or contained.
capacity management - The long-term and short-term management and assignment of national airspace system (NAS) airspace and routes to meet expected demand. This includes assigning related NAS assets, as well as coordinating longer term staffing plans for airspace assignments. It includes the allocation of airspace to airspace classifications based on demand, as well as the allocation of airspace and routes to ANSP personnel to manage workload.
cargo - Anything other than passengers, carried for hire, including both mail and freight.
cargo waybill - A document that lists the goods and shipping instructions for a cargo shipment. The waybill is frequently attached to the side of a package or envelope and sometimes indicates the customer’s cost to ship the item. There is a 6.25 percent tax on cargo waybills, which is deposited into the Airport and Airway Trust Fund. Cargo airlines contribute to the AATF in this way.
cash balance - The available cash or liquid Treasury notes remaining in the Trust Fund; a measure of all revenues received (taxes, interest and adjustments) minus all cash outlays. The cash balance of the Trust Fund consists of both committed and uncommitted funds.
certificated air carrier - An air carrier holding a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to conduct scheduled services interstate and, when authorized, to overseas locations. These carriers may also conduct nonscheduled or charter operations.
certificated airports - Airports that service air-carrier operations with aircraft seating more than 30 passengers.
charter - When an aircraft, typically the entire aircraft, is hired for a nonscheduled trip.
charter rules - The United States has negotiated several types of charter arrangements with other countries. In several cases, the U.S. government has signed bilateral agreements covering only charter air services, or it has approved provisions for charters in the form of letter exchanges or memoranda of understanding. More frequently, the United States negotiates a charter annex to the standard bilateral agreement. There are two basic types of charter annexes: (1) Country-of-Origin, in which charter air services may be performed by either party’s airlines according to the charterworthiness rules that are effective in the country-of-origin of the traffic; (2) Double Country-of-Origin (Belgian Rules), which dictates that charter air services may be performed by either party’s airlines, from either territory, according to the rules of charterworthiness of either country.
Chicago Agreement - These types of agreements are patterned on the standard-form bilateral international Air Transport Agreement drafted at the conference convened in Chicago in 1944 to establish a multilateral arrangement for international civil aviation. The bilateral form was drafted as a suggested interim measure, pending conclusion of a multilateral exchange of traffic rights, which never materialized. A Chicago agreement provides a general operating framework but, unlike other types of air transport agreements, does not include pricing or capacity arrangements.
Chicago Convention - (December 7, 1944) Consists of general principles, standards and recommended practices for international civil aviation. An outgrowth of the Chicago Conference of 1944, the convention also established the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), with headquarters in Montreal. ICAO consists of an Assembly, Council and various other specialized bodies. The organization’s aims and objectives are to develop the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and to foster the planning and development of international air transport. The United States ratified the Chicago Convention on August 9, 1946 (See <a href="http://www.icao.int/icaonet/dcs/7300.html)">http://www.icao.int/icaonet/dcs/7300.html)</a>.
civil aviation - All nonmilitary flights.
Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) - The CRAF program uses aircraft from U.S. airlines that have contractually committed to support U.S. Department of Defense airlift requirements in emergencies when the need for airlift exceeds the capability of military aircraft.
cockpit voice recorder (CVR) - A device that records the sounds audible in the cockpit, as well as all radio transmissions made and received by the aircraft, and all intercom and public-address announcements made in the aircraft. Generally, it is either a continuous-loop recorder that retains the sounds of the last 30 minutes or a digital system that records the last two hours.
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) - The compilation of regulations of all U.S. government departments and agencies that are currently in effect. The FAA Federal Air Regulations are part of the Code of Federal Regulations.
code sharing - A marketing practice in which two or more airlines agree to share, for marketing purposes, the same two-letter code used to identify carriers in the computer reservation systems used by travel agents. [adj. code-sharing agreement]
combi - A type of aircraft whose main deck is divided into two sections, one of which is fitted with seats and one which is used for cargo.
commercial aviation - A sector of the U.S. economy comprising scheduled and nonscheduled passenger and cargo airlines, aviation manufacturers, airport and aircraft service providers (including government services) and air cargo service providers.
commercial service airport - As defined by federal law, an airport receiving scheduled passenger service and having 2,500 or more enplaned passengers per year.
committed balance - The budget authority issued by Congress, against the Trust Fund, not yet liquidated through outlays. This committed money consists of both obligated and unobligated amounts.
commuter air carrier - An air carrier operating under 14 CFR Part 135 that carries passengers on at least five round trips per week on at least one route between two or more points, according to its published flight schedules that specify the times, day of the week and places between which these flights are performed. The aircraft that a commuter operates have 60 or fewer passenger seats and a payload capability of 18,000 pounds or less.
complexity - An ATC description of how nonhomogeneous the traffic demand is. Factors that cause complexity to be higher are large numbers of vertically transitioning aircraft, large numbers of crossing paths, large variation in speeds, etc.
compressor - A fanlike disk, or several disks, at the front end of a jet engine that draws air into the engine and compresses the air. The compressed air is then passed into a combustion chamber, where it is mixed with fuel and burned, producing thrust, which propels the aircraft.
computer reservation system (CRS) - A system for electronically collecting and displaying information about commercial flights and passenger reservations on them.
conflict - Any situation involving an aircraft and a hazard (including another aircraft) in which the applicable separation minima may be compromised.
connecting flight - A flight on which a passenger changes aircraft and/or airlines at an intermediate stop to reach the final destination, wherein the previous flight segment had a different flight number.
constant dollar - Dollar value adjusted for changes in the average price level by dividing a current dollar amount by a price index.
consumer price index (CPI) - A Department of Labor measure of the average change over time in the prices paid by urban consumers for a market basket of consumer goods and services. The CPI serves as an economic indicator, a deflator of other economic series and a means of adjusting dollar values.
continuous descent approach (CDA) - The stair-stepped approaches to airports in use today begin many miles from the airport and require substantial time flying at low altitudes. Planes descend in steps and require additional thrust each time they level off. With CDA, an aircraft is positioned at its most efficient cruise altitude until it is relatively close to its destination airport. At that point, the aircraft reduces engine thrust to idle and begins a gentle descent to the runway. Benefits include significant reduction in noise, fuel burn and emissions, and shorter flights.
contract authority - Allows a federal agency to enter into contracts before appropriations. For FAA, this most frequently applies to AIP (Airport Improvement Program) funds.
control tower - The control tower is located at the airport and generally handles airplanes at and in close proximity of the airport.
controlled time of arrival - The assignment and acceptance of an entry/use time for a specific NAS resource. Examples include point-in-space metering, time to be at a runway or taxi waypoints.
cooperative surveillance - The aircraft relays its three-dimensional position. Noncooperative surveillance would be the determination of an aircraft’s three-dimensional position without the aircraft participating.
corporate aviation - Refers to flying an airplane that is owned and operated by a corporation. It operates according to FAR Part 91.
cost per available seat mile - See unit cost.
cost per available ton mile - See unit cost.
coterminalization - The right to serve two or more specified points in the territory of a party to an air-transport services agreement on the same flight, provided these points are contained in the same route. If two or more separate routes are granted, the right to coterminalize points on separate routes must be specifically established.
crack spread - The difference between crude oil and refined petroleum product prices, when expressed in similar units, is known as the crack spread. For example, if crude oil costs $60 per barrel and jet fuel costs $75 per barrel, the jet fuel crack spread is $15 per barrel.
crude oil - A mixture of hydrocarbons that exists in the liquid phase in natural underground reservoirs and remains liquid at atmospheric pressure after passing through surface-separating facilities. The U.S. benchmark for crude-oil prices is West Texas Intermediate (WTI), measured in Cushing, Oklahoma.
cruise - The phase of flight that begins when the crew establishes the aircraft at a defined speed and predetermined constant initial altitude and proceeds in the direction of a destination. It ends with the beginning of descent for the purpose of an approach or by the crew initiating an en route climb phase.
current dollar - Dollar value of a good or service in terms of prices current at the time the good or service is sold.