US airlines traffic falls in March

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Several of the major US airlines reported a sharp fall in passenger numbers during March, as the decline in demand for air travel continues and the later date for Easter this year combine to see fewer seats taken on scheduled flights.

One exception to the report was Southwest Airlines, which noted only a slight dip in passenger traffic numbers, and reported that more seats were filled on its planes this March than during the same month last year. It reported a decline in traffic of 0.4 percent, on a capacity reduction of 1.5 percent. Compared with March of 2008, it filled 0.8 percent more of its seats, or 77.3 percent.

American Airlines said its passenger numbers decreased last month by 10.9 percent, on a capacity reduction of 5.6 percent. US Airways reported a decrease of 8.9 percent in passenger numbers on a 6.1 percent reduction in capacity.

On AirTran Airways, the drop in traffic was 7.2 per cent and on Alaska Airline, passenger numbers were down by 8.1 percent, the two carriers reported. Both noted that their planes were fuller, as reductions in capacity more than offset the drop in passenger traffic.

In comparison, the load factor on American Airlines fell by 4.8 points to 79.2 percent, while US Airways saw a drop of 2.5 points, to 81.9 percent. Continental Airlines reported a load factor of 79.9 percent, which was a decline of 2.7 points.

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