Direct Costs
In 2008, 129 million system delay minutes are estimated to have driven nearly $10 billion in direct aircraft operating costs for scheduled U.S. passenger airlines. The cost of aircraft block (taxi plus airborne) time was $74.10 per minute, 23 percent higher than in 2007. Fuel costs increased 47 percent to $40.94 per minute. Crew costs are estimated to have cost $13.31 per minute, followed by maintenance and aircraft ownership ($10.18 and $7.79, respectively) and all other costs ($1.87).
|
Calendar Year 2008 |
Direct Aircraft Operating
Cost per Block Minute |
∆ vs. 2007 |
2008 Delay Costs
($ millions) |
| Fuel |
$40.94 |
47.0% |
$5,280 |
| Crew - Pilots/Flight Attendants |
13.31 |
4.7% |
1,717 |
| Maintenance |
10.18 |
6.4% |
1,313 |
| Aircraft Ownership |
7.79 |
1.2% |
1,005 |
| Other |
1.87 |
-28.6% |
241 |
| Total DOCs |
$74.10 |
22.6% |
$9,556 |
Notes:
1. Costs based on DOT Form 41 data for U.S. scheduled passenger airlines with annual revenues >= $100 million
2. Arrival delay minutes reflect operations at 77 U.S. airports as captured in the FAA ASPM database
Additional Costs
Delayed aircraft also drive the need for extra gates and ground personnel and impose costs on airline customers (including shippers) in the form of lost productivity, wages and goodwill. Assuming $37.18 per hour* as the average value of a passenger's time, 2008 delays are estimated to have cost air travelers over $4 billion.
Implications
ATC delays, especially enroute delays, prevail in many parts of the national airspace system. Moreover, our airport and airway infrastructure can not be scaled to meet future demand as anticipated in the FAA aerospace forecasts. In addition to new runways, the deployment of modern ATC technologies and changes to operational procedures are critical to the nation's air system and the economy.
* Value derived from FAA-recommended values as adjusted for BLS employment costs.