BTS Releases January Passenger Airline Employment Data; January 2013 Employment Down 2.3 Percent from January 2012

U.S. scheduled passenger airlines employed 379,816 workers in January 2013, 2.3 percent fewer than in January 2012, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today. Scheduled passenger airline categories include network, low-cost, regional and other airlines. This was the fifth consecutive month that full-time equivalent (FTE) employment for U.S. scheduled passenger carriers was below that of the same month of the previous year. This follows 21 months of increases over the same month of the previous year (December 2010 through August 2012).

BTS, a part of the Department’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the January 2013 FTE total for scheduled passenger carriers was 8,962 fewer than in January 2012 and down 9.3 percent from the recent January high of 418,702 in January 2008.

The five network airlines that collectively employ two-thirds of the scheduled passenger airline FTEs reported 3.1 percent fewer FTEs in January 2013, the sixth consecutive decline from the same month of the previous year for the group. Delta Air Lines, eliminating positions following its merger with Northwest Airlines, reduced FTEs by 3.7 percent from January 2012. American Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy in November 2011, reduced FTEs by 9.8 percent over the same period. United Airlines reported a post-merger total of 82,209 FTEs in January 2013, 1.1 percent more FTEs than in January 2012. US Airways reported 0.2 percent fewer FTEs while Alaska Airlines increased FTEs by 3.2 percent from January 2012. Network airlines operate a significant portion of flights using at least one hub where connections are made for flights to down-line destinations or spoke cities.

Four of the six low-cost carriers, Allegiant Airlines, Virgin America Airlines, Spirit Airlines and JetBlue Airways, reported an increase in FTEs. Southwest Airlines, following its merger with AirTran Airways, reported 45,835 FTEs in January 2013, 0.3 percent more than the two airlines reported separately in January 2012. Frontier Airlines was the only low-cost carrier that reported fewer FTEs. Low-cost airlines operate under a low-cost business model, with infrastructure and aircraft operating costs below the overall industry average.

See Passenger Airline Employment press release for summary tables and additional data. Historical employment data can be found on the BTS web site.

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