ARC: Air ticket sales by US travel agents up 6 percent

ARLINGTON, Va. - ARC, the financial settlement link between airlines and travel sellers, reported today that the consolidated dollar value of airline tickets sold by U.S.-based travel agencies increased 6.57 percent year-over-year in the first quarter of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, and 18 percent over the same period in 2010. January through March 2012 ticket sales totalled $23.3 billion, compared to $21.9 billion in 2011, and $19.8 billion in 2010.

Year-to-date passenger segments for the first quarter of 2012 increased slightly by 0.80 percent – at 86.8 million segments, compared to 86.2 million in 2011 – while reflecting a -0.87 percent decrease over the same period in 2010. Ticket transactions for January through March 2012 were up, at 1 percent compared to the same period in 2011, while up by 0.69 percent over the same period in 2010.