BTS Releases October 2013 U.S. Airline Traffic Data: Systemwide Passengers Up 1.8 Percent from October 2012

Jan. 16, 2014
The systemwide total was the result of a 1.5 percent increase in the number of domestic passengers (54.6 million) and a 4.1 percent increase in international passengers (7.4 million).

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today that U.S. airlines carried 62.0 million systemwide (domestic + international) scheduled service passengers in October 2013, 1.8 percent more than in October 2012. The systemwide total was the result of a 1.5 percent increase in the number of domestic passengers (54.6 million) and a 4.1 percent increase in international passengers (7.4 million). 

BTS, a part of the Department’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that U.S. airlines carried 0.6 percent more total systemwide passengers during the first 10 months of 2013 (622.8 million) than during the same period in 2012. During that period, domestically, U.S. airlines carried 540.5 million passengers, up 0.2 percent from 2012. Internationally, they carried 82.3 million passengers, up 3.1 percent from 2012. See Tables 2, 8 and 14 of Air Traffic Press Releases for previous-year data. 

Systemwide, domestic and international load factors declined in October 2013 from a year earlier. Growth in capacity, measured by Available Seat-Miles (ASMs) exceeded growth in Revenue Passenger-Miles (RPMs). Load factor is a measure of the use of aircraft capacity that compares RPMs as a proportion of ASMs. 

Top Airlines 

In October, Delta Air Lines carried more systemwide passengers than any other U.S. airline.  Southwest Airlines carried the most domestic passengers while United Airlines carried the most international passengers. The top 10 U.S. airlines in terms of number of passengers carried 80.6 percent of systemwide passengers, up from 80.5 percent carried by the U.S. airlines that were in the top 10 in October 2012. 

See Air Traffic Release for summary tables and additional data. Additional traffic data can be found on the BTS Airlines and Airports page.  Click on a link in the Quick Links box on the right.  For more historical data, see Traffic on the BTS website.