News and Statistical Releases

April 21, 2021

Air Travel Consumer Report: February 2021 Numbers

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation today released its April 2021 Air Travel Consumer Report (ATCR) on airline operational data compiled for the month of February 2021.  The ATCR is designed to assist consumers with information on the quality of services provided by airlines.  The ATCR and other aviation consumer matters of interest to the public can be found at...

April 21, 2021

U.S. Airlines Carried 10% More Cargo in February 2021 than February 2020 (Preliminary)

U.S. airlines carried 10% more cargo by weight in February 2021 (preliminary) than in February 2020. The rise was fueled by gains of 5% in domestic cargo and 24% in international cargo, according to data filed with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) by 15 of the leading U.S. cargo airlines.

April 20, 2021

Average Air Fares Dropped to All-Time Low in 2020

The 2020 average domestic itinerary air fare of $292 was the lowest inflation-adjusted annual fare since the Bureau of Transportation Statistics began collecting such records in 1995, down 19% from the previous low of $359 in 2019.

April 19, 2021

February 2021 U.S. Passenger Airline Employment Down Over 3,000 Compared to January 2021

The 22 U.S. scheduled passenger airlines employed 0.8% fewer full-time equivalents (FTEs) in February 2021 than in January 2021: February’s total number of FTEs (394,843) was down 3,156 from January (397,999) and down 66,754 from the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 (461,597). ...

April 15, 2021

January 2021 U.S. Airline Traffic Data

U.S. airlines carried 30.8 million systemwide (domestic and international) scheduled service passengers in January 2021, seasonally adjusted, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS), down 0.9% from December.

April 14, 2021

February 2021 Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI): Largest monthly decline since the onset of pandemic

The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI), which is based on the amount of freight carried by the for-hire transportation industry, declined 3.6% in February from January, falling to its lowest level since September, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS). The decline in February followed five consecutive months of growth.

April 13, 2021

U.S. Airlines February 2021 Passengers Decreased 61% from February 2020 (Preliminary)

U.S. airlines carried 61% fewer scheduled service passengers in February 2021 than in February 2020 (preliminary), according to data filed with the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) by 22 airlines that carry more than 90% of the passengers. February was the fifth straight month of year-over-year declines slightly above 60%.

April 8, 2021

Mid-February Airline Industry Employment Down 3,000 Employees from Mid-January

U.S. airlines employed 711,554 workers in the middle of February 2021, 3,030 fewer than in mid-January 2021 (714,584 revised) and 43,541 fewer than in March 2020 (755,095 revised). The January total was the highest since April (718,385 revised).

April 7, 2021

U.S. Airlines February 2021 Fuel Use Down 10% from January

The Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) today released U.S. airlines’ February Fuel Cost and Consumption numbers.

March 30, 2021

CORRECTED: January 2021 Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) Rose 1.1% from December

The numbers in this release are corrected from the release issued on March 10 in which the December index number was incorrect.

The Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI), which is based on the amount of freight carried by the for-hire transportation industry, rose 1.1% in January from the corrected December level, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of...