BTS Releases May Passenger Airline Employment Data;
Network Airlines Report First Monthly Increase since August 2001 

The seven network airlines, a group that includes most of the industry’s largest passenger carriers, employed 0.3 percent more workers in May 2007 than in May 2006, the first increase in full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) from the same month of the previous year since August 2001, the month before 9/11, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today (Table 1).  FTE calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee. 

BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), reported that network carriers Continental Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines and US Airways added FTEs from May 2006 to May 2007 while Northwest Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines reduced FTEs (Table 9). 

Network carriers operate a significant portion of their flights using at least one hub where connections are made for flights to down-line destinations or spoke cities. 

The entire U.S. scheduled passenger airline industry employed 2.0 percent more workers in May 2007 than in May 2006, the fourth consecutive increase in full-time equivalent employee (FTE) levels for the scheduled passenger carriers from the same month of the previous year (Table 2). 

The low-cost carriers employed 5.3 percent more FTEs than a year earlier, and the regional group reported 7.2 percent more FTEs (Tables 1, 5).   

Other airlines adding FTEs from May 2006 to May 2007 were all of the low-cost carriers except for ATA Airlines (Table 12), and regional carriers Republic Airlines, Shuttle America, SkyWest Airlines, ExpressJet Airlines, Pinnacle Airlines, Horizon Air, Atlantic Southeast Airlines, GoJet Airlines, American Eagle Airlines, Mesa Airlines, and Air Wisconsin (Table 15). 

Scheduled passenger airlines include network, low-cost, regional and other airlines.  Many regional carriers were not required to report employment numbers before 2003, so year-to-year comparisons involving regional carriers, or the total industry, are not available for the years before 2003.   

The seven network carriers employed 266,600 FTEs in May, 64.7 percent of the passenger airline total, while low-cost carriers employed 17.7 percent and regional carriers employed 14.7 percent (Table 4).   

American Airlines employed the most FTEs in May among the network carriers, Southwest Airlines employed the most among low-cost carriers and Sky West employed the most among regional carriers. Six of the top 10 employers in the industry are network carriers (Table 6). 

Network Airlines 

Network carrier FTEs increased 0.3 percent in May 2007 compared to May 2006, the first monthly gain from the same month of the previous year since August 2001 (Table 7).  

Four network carriers increased FTEs from May 2006 to May 2007.  They were: US Airways up 6.1 percent, Continental up 4.7 percent, Delta up 3.0 percent and Alaska up 2.5 percent. The largest FTE decreases were reported by United, 3.3 percent, and Northwest, 4.1 percent (Table 9).   

Collectively, the seven network carriers reduced their FTE headcount by 17.2 percent, or 55,300 FTEs, from May 2003 to May 2007.  Network carrier FTEs dropped from 321,900 to 266,600 during the four-year period (Table 8).    

FTEs at six of the network carriers declined in May 2007 from May 2003. The exception was Continental with a 3.0 percent increase over May 2003. The biggest percentage decline was at Northwest, down 24.9 percent, a reduction of 9,600 FTEs. United, Delta, and US Airways all reported cuts of more than 20 percent in the four years.  American’s FTEs were down 16.7 percent and Alaska’s were down 6.4 percent during that time (Table 9). 

Data for US Airways and America West Airlines, now in the process of merging operations, are separately reported – US Airways’ data are included in the network carriers’ category and America West’s in the low-cost carriers’ category.  US Airways will begin reporting a single number for the merged companies later this year. 

Low-Cost Airlines 

Low-cost carrier FTEs rose 5.3 percent in May 2007 compared to May 2006, the eighth consecutive increase after 18 consecutive monthly decreases from the previous year (Table 10).   

All the low-cost carriers had FTE increases from May 2006 to May 2007 except ATA, which reported a decline of 11.5 percent. AirTran Airways and Frontier Airlines reported increases of more than 10 percent (Table 12). 

Low-cost carrier FTEs were 70,700 in May 2003, 69,100 in May 2006 and 72,700 in May 2007. The rise from 2003 to 2007 was 2.9 percent (Table 11).  The 2003 to 2007 increase would be 9.6 percent if the 2003 employment data are excluded for Independence Air, which discontinued all flights on Jan. 5, 2006 (Table 12). 

Employment data for Independence Air, which changed its business model from a regional to low-cost carrier in mid-2004, have been included with low-cost carriers for 2004 and 2005 for consistency.   

Low-cost carriers are those that the industry recognizes as operating under a low-cost business model, with fewer infrastructure costs and greater expectations of productivity.  

Regional Airlines 

Regional carrier FTEs were up 7.2 percent in May 2007 compared to May 2006, the fourth consecutive month with an increase in FTEs of more than 5 percent from the same month of the previous year (Table 13).  

Shuttle America and Republic reported the largest increases in the group.  Shuttle America employed 31.8 percent more FTEs in May 2007 than May 2006 while Republic employed 70.2 percent more (Table 15). 

Regional carrier FTEs rose from 51,200 in May 2004 to 60,600 in May 2007, an increase of 18.3 percent (Table 14).    

The 10 regional carriers reporting employment data in both 2003 and 2007 employed 21.0 percent more FTEs in May 2007 than in May 2003.  Of that group, Mesaba Airlines, Air Wisconsin and Executive Airlines were the only carriers to report fewer FTEs in May 2007 than May 2003 (Table 15).  

Regional carriers typically provide service from small cities, using primarily regional jets to support the network carriers’ hub and spoke systems.            

Reporting Notes 

Airlines that operate at least one aircraft with the capacity to carry combined passengers, cargo and fuel of 18,000 pounds – the payload factor – must report monthly employment statistics.  

The Other Carrier category generally reflects those airlines that operate within specific niche markets, such as Aloha Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines in serving the Hawaiian Islands. 

Data are compiled from monthly reports filed with BTS by commercial air carriers as of July 10. 

Additional airline employment data can be found on the BTS website at http://www.bts.gov/programs/airline_information/number_of_employees/.  BTS has scheduled release of June airline employment data for Aug. 21. 

Table 1: Change in Passenger Airline Full-time Equivalent Employees* from the Previous Year

Percent change compared to same month the previous year for the most recent 13 months

Month	Network Carriers    (Pct. Change)   From Table 7	Low-Cost Carriers** (Pct. Change)   From Table 10	Regional Carriers    (Pct. Change)   From Table13	All Passenger Airlines***   (Pct. Change)  From Table 2
May 2005-May 2006	-7.0	-2.1	-1.2	-5.0
June 2005-June 2006	-6.9	-2.0	-1.6	-5.0
July 2005-July 2006	-8.1	-2.6	-0.8	-5.9
Aug. 2005-Aug. 2006	-4.7	-0.8	-1.0	-3.1
Sept. 2005-Sept. 2006	-4.1	-0.4	-0.3	-2.7
Oct. 2005-Oct. 2006	-4.0	0.8	0.6	-2.3
Nov. 2005-Nov. 2006	-3.4	0.9	2.4	-1.6
Dec. 2005-Dec. 2006	-2.9	1.4	3.4	-1.0
Jan. 2006-Jan. 2007	-2.6	4.5	3.0	-0.5
Feb. 2006-Feb. 2007	-2.2	5.0	5.9	0.2
Mar 2006-Mar 2007	-1.4	4.4	5.6	0.6
Apr. 2006-Apr. 2007	-0.7	5.7	5.6	1.3
May 2006-May 2007	0.3	5.3	7.2	2.0

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

**Employment numbers in 2005 for Independence Air, which changed its business model from a regional to low-cost carrier in mid-2004, are included with low-cost carriers. The airline discontinued flights on Jan. 5, 2006.

*** Includes network, low-cost, regional and other carriers.  Other Carriers generally operate within specific niche markets.  They are: Allegiant Air, Aloha Airlines, Boston-Maine Airways, Casino Express Airlines, Continental Micronesia, Eos Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Midwest Airlines, Sun Country Airlines and USA3000 Airlines.  USA3000 did not report in December 2006 and subsequent months.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 2: Change in Total Passenger Airline* Full-time Equivalent Employees** from the Previous Year*

Percent change compared to same month the previous year

Month	2004	2005	2006	2007
January	-5.6	-0.8	-6.0	-0.5
February	-5.3	-1.4	-5.8	0.2
March	-4.1	-1.9	-5.4	0.6
April	-2.3	-3.1	-4.6	1.3
May	-0.8	-3.5	-5.0	2.0
June	0.5	-3.8	-5.0
July	2.5	-3.5	-5.9
August	2.2	-5.8	-3.1
September	2.4	-5.8	-2.7
October	2.5	-6.0	-2.3
November	2.2	-6.5	-1.6
December	0.9	-5.9	-1.0

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Includes network, low-cost, regional and other carriers.

** Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 3: Total Passenger Airline* Full-time Equivalent Employees** by Month

Numbers in thousands (000’s)

Month	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	Percent Change
						2003-2007	2006-2007
January	465.7	435.0	431.5	405.7	403.6	-13.3	-0.5
February	459.4	435.0	428.9	404.5	405.4	-11.7	0.2
March	454.3	435.9	427.7	404.7	407.4	-10.3	0.6
April	448.2	437.8	424.1	404.0	409.6	-8.6	1.3
May	443.2	439.6	424.4	403.6	411.8	-7.1	2.0
June	438.9	440.9	424.3	403.0
July	433.2	444.1	428.5	403.0
August	433.3	443.0	417.5	404.4
September	429.6	440.0	414.5	403.4
October	428.3	439.1	412.7	403.3
November	429.9	439.5	411.0	404.2
December	430.2	434.0	408.6	404.7

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Includes network, low-cost, regional and other carriers.

** Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Percent changes and averages based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 4: Total Number of Full-time Equivalent Employees* (FTEs) by Carrier Group, May 2003-2007

FTE Numbers in thousands (000’s)

	Network	Low-Cost	Regional	All Passenger Airlines**
2003	321.9	70.7	41.5	443.2
2004	306.0	71.3	51.2	439.6
2005	285.8	70.5	56.9	424.4
2006	265.8	69.1	56.5	403.6
2007	266.6	72.7	60.6	411.8
Pct. Change 2003-2007	-17.2	2.9	18.3	-6.3
Percent of Total Passenger Airline Employees in 2007	64.7%	17.7%	14.7%

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

** Includes network, low-cost, regional and other carriers.

*** Percent change comparison for regional airlines and for all passenger airlines is for 2004 to 2007 because of the number of airlines in these categories that did not meet the standard for reporting monthly employment numbers.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

 Table 5: Full-time Equivalent Employees* by Carrier Group, Year-to-Year Change, May 2003-2007

Percent Change from the previous year

	Network	Low-Cost	Regional**	All Passenger Airlines***
2003	-12.7	6.4	70.1	-5.5
2004	-4.9	0.8	23.3	-0.8
2005	-6.6	-1.0	11.1	-3.5
2006	-7.0	-2.1	-0.6	-4.9
2007	0.3	5.3	7.2	2.0

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

** Many regional carriers were not required to report employment numbers before 2003, so year-to-year comparisons involving regional carriers, or the total industry, are not appropriate for the years before 2003. 

*** Includes network, low-cost, regional and other carriers.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 6: Top 10 Airlines, May 2007

Ranked by Number of Full-Time Equivalent Employees*

Rank	Airline	Total FTE Employees (000)	Carrier Group	May 2006 Rank	May 2005 Rank
1	American	73,225	Network	1	1
2	United	51,765	Network	2	2
3	Delta	46,575	Network	3	3
4	Continental	36,005	Network	4	5
5	Southwest	33,230	Low Cost	5	6
6	Northwest	29,081	Network	6	4
7	US Airways	20,393	Network	7	7
8	America West	12,480	Low Cost	8	8
9	Sky West	9,786	Regional	12	11
10	JetBlue	9,600	Low Cost	9	12

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

 

Table 7: Network Airline Full-time Equivalent Employees* Change from

the Previous Year

Percent change compared to same month the previous year

Month	2004	2005	2006	2007
January	-12.5	-4.1	-8.1	-2.6
February	-11.0	-4.6	-7.8	-2.2
March	-8.7	-5.0	-7.4	-1.4
April	-6.6	-6.5	-6.7	-0.7
May	-4.9	-6.6	-7.0	0.3
June	-3.6	-7.0	-6.9
July	-2.0	-5.9	-8.1
August	-1.7	-9.0	-4.7
September	-1.7	-8.9	-4.1
October	-1.4	-8.9	-4.0
November	-1.8	-9.3	-3.4
December	-3.5	-8.5	-2.9

Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 8: Network Carrier Full-time Equivalent Employees* by Month

Numbers in thousands (000’s)

Rank	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	Percent Change
						2003-2007	2006-2007
January	348.7	305.1	292.7	269.1	262.0	-24.9	-2.6
February	342.3	304.7	290.9	268.2	262.4	-23.3	-2.2
March	333.8	304.6	289.3	267.8	264.1	-20.9	-1.4
April	327.2	305.6	285.8	266.6	264.8	-19.1	-0.7
May	321.9	306.0	285.8	265.8	266.6	-17.2	0.3
June	317.5	306.1	284.8	265.0
July	312.5	306.3	288.2	264.9
August	310.6	305.3	277.8	264.8
September	307.6	302.4	275.4	264.0
October	305.3	300.9	274.1	263.0
November	305.7	300.2	272.4	263.0
December	306.2	295.7	270.6	262.9
Monthly Average	320.1	303.7	282.4	265.4
Jan-May Average	334.8	305.2	288.9	267.5	264.0	-21.1	-1.3

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Percent changes and averages based on numbers prior to rounding.

  

Table 9: Network Carrier Full-time Equivalent Employees*, May 2003-2007

(Ranked by May 2007 FTEs)

Numbers in thousands (000’s)

Rank		2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	Percent Change
							2003-2007	2006-2007
1	American	87.9	79.2	76.1	73.8	73.2	-16.7	-0.8
2	United	65.0	59.3	55.2	53.6	51.8	-20.3	-3.3
3	Delta	58.5	58.2	53.2	45.2	46.6	-20.3	3.0
4	Continental	35.0	34.8	32.7	34.4	36.0	3.0	4.7
5	Northwest	38.7	38.4	37.7	30.3	29.1	-24.9	-4.1
6	US Airways	26.8	25.9	22.1	19.2	20.4	-23.8	6.1
7	Alaska	10.2	10.2	8.9	9.3	9.5	-6.4	2.5
		321.9	306.0	285.8	265.8	266.6	-17.2	0.3

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

Note: Detail may not add to total due to rounding

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 10: Change in Low-Cost Airline Full-time Equivalent Employees* from

the Previous Year

Percent change compared to same month the previous year

Month	2004	2005	2006	2007
January	8.4	0.5	-5.3	4.5
February	6.9	0.6	-4.1	5.0
March	0.5	0.0	-3.0	4.4
April	0.6	-0.7	-2.2	5.7
May	0.8	-1.0	-2.1	5.3
June	1.5	-1.2	-2.1
July	2.3	-1.5	-2.0
August	1.1	-0.7	-0.8
September	0.7	-1.0	-0.4
October	-0.2	-1.2	0.8
November	0.5	-2.5	0.9
December	0.5	-1.4	1.4

Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

Note: Employment numbers in 2004 and 2005 for Independence Air, which changed its business model from a regional to low-cost carrier in mid-2004, are included with low-cost carriers. The airline discontinued flights on Jan. 5, 2006.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

 

Table 11: Low-Cost Carrier Full-time Equivalent Employees* by Month

Numbers in thousands (000’s)

Rank	2003**	2004**	2005**	2006	2007	Percent Change
						2003-2007	2006-2007
January	65.7	71.2	71.6	67.8	70.8	7.8	4.5
February	65.9	70.5	70.9	68.0	71.4	8.3	5.0
March	70.5	70.8	70.8	68.7	71.7	1.7	4.4
April	70.6	71.0	70.4	68.9	72.8	3.2	5.7
May	70.7	71.3	70.5	69.1	72.7	2.9	5.3
June	70.6	71.7	70.8	69.4
July	70.7	72.4	71.3	69.4
August	70.8	71.6	71.1	70.5
September	70.7	71.3	70.6	70.3
October	71.3	71.2	70.4	70.9
November	71.9	72.3	70.5	71.1
December	71.3	71.6	70.6	71.6
Monthly Average	69.7	71.4	70.8	69.6
Jan-May Average	68.7	70.9	70.8	68.5	71.9	4.7	5.0

Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

** Employment numbers in 2004 and 2005 for Independence Air, which changed its business model from a regional to low-cost carrier in mid-2004, are included with low-cost carriers. The airline discontinued flights on Jan. 5, 2006.

Note: Percent changes and averages based on numbers prior to rounding.

Note: Detail may not add to total due to rounding.

Table 12: Low-Cost Carrier Full-time Equivalent Employees,* May 2003-2007

(Ranked by May 2007 FTEs)

Numbers in thousands (000’s)

Rank		2003**	2004**	2005**	2006	2007	Percent Change
							2003-2007	2006-2007
1	Southwest	33.0	31.4	31.2	31.7	33.2	0.7	4.9
2	America West	10.9	11.5	12.0	11.7	12.5	14.3	7.0
3	JetBlue	4.5	5.7	7.2	9.6	9.6	113.6	0.2
4	AirTran	5.2	5.5	6.2	7.0	8.0	55.0	13.6
5	Frontier	3.0	3.9	4.1	4.4	4.9	62.2	10.4
6	ATA	7.4	6.9	4.5	2.7	2.4	-67.4	-11.5
7	Spirit	2.4	2.4	2.0	2.0	2.2	-11.0	8.7
8	Independence	4.3	3.9	3.3	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	Total	70.7	71.3	70.5	69.1	72.7	2.9	5.3

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

**Employment numbers in 2004 and 2005 for Independence Air, which changed its business model from a regional to low-cost carrier in mid-2004, are included with low-cost carriers.  The carrier did not meet the standard for filing in previous years. The airline discontinued flights on Jan. 5, 2006.

N/A: Not applicable because carriers did not meet the standard for filing.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.

Note: Detail may not add to total due to rounding.

 

Table 13: Change in Regional Airline Full-time Equivalent Employees* from

the Previous Year

Percent change compared to same month the previous year

	2004**	2005***	2006	2007
January	16.3	15.5	2.5	3.0
February	17.3	14.3	1.1	5.9
March	21.6	13.7	0.5	5.6
April	21.7	12.6	0.6	5.6
May	23.3	11.1	-0.6	7.2
June	24.9	11.0	-1.6
July	33.0	6.0	-0.8
August	31.6	5.1	-1.0
September	32.4	4.3	-0.3
October	33.0	2.7	0.6
November	31.0	2.1	2.4
December	29.3	1.8	3.4

 Source: Bureau of Transportation Statistics

* Full-time Equivalent Employee (FTE) calculations count two part-time employees as one full-time employee.

** Mesa, Pinnacle and PSA began reporting employment numbers in 2004.

*** Republic, Shuttle America and GoJet reported for part of 2005.

Note: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.