US-international air passenger traffic for January 2015 up five percent

WASHINGTON, DC – International non-stop air traffic to/from the US totaled 16.1 million passengers in January 2015, a 5.4 percent increase over January 2014.

U.S. citizen travel (6.8 million) increased 7.2 percent, raising its share to 42.3 percent of all air traffic. Non-U.S. citizen air travelers (9.3 million) increased by 4.2 percent.

U.S. airlines carried 8.3 million passengers, up 3.1 percent, however their share slipped from 52 to 51 percent. Foreign flags carried 7.9 million passengers, up 8.1 percent from January 2014.

International Passengers (mlns) % Chg y-o-y Market Share % Pt. chg.
U.S. Citizens 6.821 7.2% 42.3% 0.7
Non-U.S. Citizens 9.296 4.2% 57.7% -0.7

U.S. Flag Carriers (2) 8.252 3.1% 51.2% -1.2
Foreign Flag Carriers 7.865 8.1% 48.8% 1.2

The following, overseas, Canada and Mexico regions are ‘breakouts’ of international:

Overseas air traffic accounted for 11.6 million passengers, 72 percent of all U.S.-international air traffic, grew by 4.8 percent.
U.S. citizen travel (5.0 million) increased 6.1 percent and comprised 42.7 percent of all overseas air traffic. Non-U.S. citizen air travelers (6.7 million) increased by 3.9 percent with their market share to slipping to 57.3 percent.

U.S. airlines carried 5.7 million passengers, up 2.1 percent, however their share dropped to 49.2 percent. Foreign flags carried 5.9 million passengers, up 7.5 percent from January 2014.

Overseas Regions Passengers (mlns) % Chg y-o-y Market Share % Pt. chg.
U.S. Citizens 4.971 6.1% 42.7% -0.5
Non-U.S. Citizens 6.668 3.9% 57.3% 0.5

U.S. Flag Carriers 5.726 2.1% 49.2% -1.3
Foreign Flag Carriers 5.912 7.5% 50.8% 1.3

Overseas regions performed as follows:
Overseas Regions Passengers (mlns) % of all
International % Change
2015 / 2014 YTD
Europe 3.596 22% 2.1%
Asia 2.515 16% 2.3%
Caribbean 1.801 11% 11.0%
South America 1.403 9% 0.1%
Central America 1.044 6% 4.5%
Middle East 0.755 5% 25.2%
Oceania 0.419 3% 6.1%
Africa 0.104 1% 0.1%

China to U.S. ‘Arrivals’ (2) for January 2015:
Non-U.S. Citizens
(Originating PRC) U.S. Citizens
(Returning) Total Inbound on
Non-stop Flights Load Factor
(Estimate)
Passengers 185,246 60,274 245,520 86.9%
% Chg. Jan 15/14 20.0% 8.0% 16.7%

Estimated capacity (282,665 seats) on inbound flights, up 22.7 percent year-over-year, exceeded 16.7 percent passenger growth.
North American markets accounted for 28 percent of U.S. international air traffic flows.

Canadian air traffic accounted for 2.2 million passengers, 14 percent of all international traffic, increased by 5.3 percent.

U.S. citizen travel (446,000) increased 9.6 percent and comprised 19.9 percent of all air traffic in the market. Canadian, and other foreign national citizen air travelers transiting through Canada (1.8 million) increased by 4.3 percent. Market share decreased slightly.

U.S. flags carried 871,000 passengers, up1.6 percent from last year, and their share dropped to 38.9 percent. Foreign flags carried 1.4 million passengers, up 7.8 percent.

Canada Region Passengers (mlns) % Chg y-o-y Market Share % Pt. chg.
U.S. Citizens 0.446 9.6% 19.9% 0.8
Non-U.S. Citizens 1.794 4.3% 80.1% -0.8

U.S. Flag Carriers 0.871 1.6% 38.9% -1.4
Foreign Flag Carriers 1.369 7.8% 61.1% 1.4

Mexico air traffic accounted for 2.2 million passengers, 14 percent of all international traffic, and was up 9.0 percent.

U.S. citizen travel (1.4 million) increased 10.4 percent and comprised 63 percent of all air traffic. Mexicans, and other foreign national air travelers (834,000) transiting through Mexico, increased by 6.6 percent, but their market share declined to 37 percent.

U.S. flags carried 1.66 million passengers, up 7.2 percent from last year, dropping their share to 74 percent. Foreign flags carried 584,000 passengers, up 14.2 percent, increasing share to 26 percent.

Mexican Region Passengers (mlns) % Chg y-o-y Market Share % Pt. chg.
U.S. Citizens 1.405 10.4% 62.7% 0.8
Non-U.S. Citizens 0.834 6.6% 37.3% -0.8

U.S. Flag Carriers 1.655 7.2% 73.9% -1.3
Foreign Flag Carriers 0.584 14.4% 26.1% 1.3

Top 10 Foreign Airports (Passenger Traffic to/From U.S.):
37.5% of Total Air Traffic
Passengers % Change y-o-y
1. London Heathrow (LHR) 1,033,089 1.0%
2. Toronto (YYZ) 916,044 5.4%
3. Tokyo Narita (NRT) 736,224 -8.6%
4. Cancun (CUN) 706,708 20.3%
5. Mexico City (MEX) 557,226 1.7%
6. Incheon (ICN) 505,293 10.7%
7. Frankfurt (FRT) 450,832 1.3%
8. Paris/de Gaulle (CDG) 419,258 -1.0%
9. Vancouver (YVR) 411,881 13.3%
10. Sao Paulo (GRU) 350,156 18.1%

Top 10 U.S. Airports (Passenger Traffic to/from Foreign Airports):
68.0% of Total Air Traffic
Passengers % Change y-o-y
1. New York (JFK) 2,071,234 2.9%
2. Miami (MIA) 1,885,920 1.0%
3. Los Angeles (LAX) 1,610,956 4.6%
4. Atlanta (ATL) 900,178 7.1%
5. Newark (EWR) 884,912 4.9%
6. Chicago (ORD) 866,323 6.3%
7. Houston (IAH) 854,498 5.8%
8. San Francisco (SFO) 813,810 5.7%
9. Dallas-Ft Worth (DFW) 621,664 6.8%
10. Fort Lauderdale (FLL) 519,726 24.8%

Top 10 Airlines Serving U.S. International Non-Stop Markets:
56.7% of Total Air Traffic, Down 2.1 Percentage Points from January 2014
Passengers % Change y-o-y
1. United Airlines 2,337,225 1.6%
2. Delta Air Lines 1,863,559 8.8%
3. American Airlines 1,859,885 -4.0%
4. US Airways 580,832 -1.1%
5. British Airways 524,964 1.5%
6. JetBlue 516,225 21.4%
7. West Jet 428,362 7.4%
8. Lufthansa 378,683 2.3%
9. Air Canada (mainline) 359,507 -22.5%
10. AeroMexico 315,347 4.5%