International air traffic to/from the U.S. (1) totaled 17.2 million passengers in January 2016, a 6.7 percent increase over January 2015.
U.S. citizen travel (7.5 million) increased 10 percent, raising its share to 43.7 percent of all air traffic. Non-U.S. citizen air travelers (9.7 million) increased by four percent.
U.S. airlines carried 8.5 million passengers, up three percent, however their share slipped from 51 to 50 percent. Foreign flags carried 8.7 million passengers, up 11 percent from January 2015.
| International |
Passengers (mlns)
|
% Chg y-o-y
|
Market Share
|
% Pt. chg.
|
| U.S. Citizens |
7.519
|
10.2%
|
43.7%
|
1.4
|
| Non-U.S. Citizens |
9.677
|
4.1%
|
56.3%
|
-1.4
|
| U.S. Flag Carriers (2) |
8.510
|
3.1%
|
49.5%
|
-1.7
|
| Foreign Flag Carriers |
8.687
|
10.5%
|
50.5%
|
1.7
|
The following, overseas, Canada and Mexico regions are ‘breakouts’ of international:
Overseas air traffic accounted for 12.5 million passengers, 73 percent of all U.S.-international air traffic, grew by eight percent.
U.S. citizen travel (5.4 million) increased eight percent and composed 43.1 percent of all overseas air traffic. Non-U.S. citizen air travelers (7.1 million) increased by seven percent with their market share to slipping to below 57 percent.
U.S. airlines carried 5.9 million passengers, up three percent, however their share dropped to 47 percent. Foreign flags carried 6.6 million passengers, up 12 percent from January 2015.
| Overseas Regions |
Passengers (mlns)
|
% Chg y-o-y
|
Market Share
|
% Pt. chg.
|
| U.S. Citizens |
5.389
|
8.4%
|
43.1%
|
0.4
|
| Non-U.S. Citizens |
7.126
|
6.9%
|
56.9%
|
-0.4
|
| U.S. Flag Carriers |
5.892
|
2.9%
|
47.1%
|
-2.1
|
| Foreign Flag Carriers |
6.623
|
12.0%
|
52.9%
|
2.1
|
Overseas regions performed as follows:
| Overseas Regions |
Passengers (mlns)
|
% of all International
|
% Change
2016/2015 |
| Europe |
3.761
|
22%
|
4.6%
|
| Asia |
2.800
|
16%
|
11.3%
|
| Caribbean |
1.863
|
11%
|
3.4%
|
| South America |
1.505
|
9%
|
7.3%
|
| Central America |
1.150
|
7%
|
10.2%
|
| Middle East |
0.874
|
5%
|
15.8%
|
| Oceania |
0.454
|
3%
|
8.2%
|
| Africa |
0.107
|
1%
|
3.1%
|
China to U.S. ‘Air Arrivals’ (2) for January 2016:
| Non-U.S. Citizens (Originating PRC) | U.S. Citizens (Returning) | Total Inbound on Non-stop Flights | Load Factor (Estimate) | |
| Passengers |
231,041
|
80,437
|
311,478
|
90.2%
|
| % Chg. Jan.16/15 |
24.7%
|
33.5%
|
26.9%
| + 3.3 pct pts |
Estimated capacity (345,337 seats) on inbound flights, up 22.2 percent year-over-year, was below the 26.9 percent in passenger growth, reflecting a higher load factor.
Chinese carriers increased average weekly frequencies from 103 to 146, up 42 percent.
U.S. carriers increased average weekly frequencies from 117 to 131, up 12 percent.
U.S. carriers increased average weekly frequencies from 117 to 131, up 12 percent.
Gulf Carrier Air Traffic to/from the U.S. - January 2016
Passengers % Chg. y-o-y
Emirates (EK) 308,754 26.2% (to/from Dubai (DXB); limited service from Milan (MXP)
Qatar (QR) 132,234 17.4% (to/from Doha (DOH))
Etihad (EY) 113,211 13.6% (to/from Abu Dhabi (AUH))
554,199
Qatar (QR) 132,234 17.4% (to/from Doha (DOH))
Etihad (EY) 113,211 13.6% (to/from Abu Dhabi (AUH))
554,199
The Gulf carrier passenger share was 3.2% of all international passenger traffic to/from the U.S., up from 2.8% in January 2015. Over 309,000 million passengers were inbound to the U.S. of which 164,000 were foreign travelers.
North American markets accounted for 27 percent of U.S. international air traffic flows.
Canadian air traffic accounted for 2.2 million passengers, 13 percent of all international traffic, and decreased by two percent.
U.S. citizen travel (503,000) increased thirteen percent and composed 23 percent of all air traffic in the market. Canadian, and other foreign national citizen air travelers transiting through Canada (1.7 million) decreased by five percent. Market share decreased three percentage points.
U.S. flags carried 796,000 passengers, down nine percent from last year, and their share dropped to 36 percent. Foreign flags carried 1.4 million passengers, up three percent.
| Canadian Region |
Passengers (mlns)
|
% Chg y-o-y
|
Market Share
|
% Pt. chg.
|
| U.S. Citizens |
0.503
|
12.8%
|
22.8%
|
2.9
|
| Non-U.S. Citizens |
1.699
|
-5.3%
|
77.2%
|
-2.9
|
| U.S. Flag Carriers |
0.796
|
-8.6%
|
36.1%
|
-2.8
|
| Foreign Flag Carriers |
1.406
|
2.7%
|
63.9%
|
2.8
|
Mexico air traffic accounted for 2.5 million passengers, 14 percent of all international traffic, and was up 11 percent.
U.S. citizen travel (1.6 million) increased 16 percent and composed 66 percent of all air traffic. Mexicans, and other foreign national air travelers (852,000) transiting through Mexico, increased by two percent, but their market share declined to 34 percent.
U.S. flags carried 1.82 million passengers, up 10 percent from last year, dropping their share to 73 percent. Foreign flags carried 659,000 passengers, up 13 percent, increasing share to almost 27 percent.
| Mexican Region |
Passengers (mlns)
|
% Chg y-o-y
|
Market Share
|
% Pt. chg.
|
| U.S. Citizens |
1.627
|
15.9
|
65.6%
|
2.9
|
| Non-U.S. Citizens |
0.852
|
2.2%
|
34.4%
|
-2.9
|
| U.S. Flag Carriers |
1.821
|
10.0%
|
73.4%
|
-0.5
|
| Foreign Flag Carriers |
0.659
|
12.8%
|
26.6%
|
0.5
|
| Top 10 Foreign Airports (Passenger Traffic to/From U.S.) | ||
| 37% of Total Air Traffic | ||
| Passengers | % Change y-o-y | |
| 1. London Heathrow (LHR) | 1,051,153 | 1.7% |
| 2. Toronto (YYZ) | 950,469 | 3.8% |
| 3. Tokyo Narita (NRT) | 770,554 | 4.7% |
| 4. Cancun (CUN) | 765,229 | 8.3% |
| 5. Mexico City (MEX) | 635,266 | 14.0% |
| 6. Incheon (ICN) | 558,774 | 10.6% |
| 7. Frankfurt (FRA) | 469,905 | 4.2% |
| 8. Paris/de Gaulle (CDG) | 446,694 | 6.5% |
| 9. Vancouver (YVR) | 412,279 | 0.1% |
| 10. Sao Paulo (GRU) | 351,663 | 0.4% |
| 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) | 2,280,643 | 10.1% |
| 2. Miami (MIA) | 1,976,024 | 4.8% |
| 3. Los Angeles (LAX) | 1,786,607 | 10.9% |
| 4. Houston (IAH) | 950,720 | 11.3% |
| 5. Atlanta (ATL) | 930,265 | 3.3% |
| 6. San Francisco (SFO) | 916,212 | 12.6% |
| 7. Chicago (ORD) | 906,311 | 4.6% |
| 8. Newark (EWR) | 868,338 | -1.9% |
| 9. Dallas-Ft Worth (DFW) | 643,050 | 3.4% |
| 10. Fort Lauderdale (FLL) | 532,833 | 2.5% |
| Top 10 Airlines (3) Serving U.S. International Non-Stop Markets: | ||
| 54% of Total Air Traffic, Down Two Percentage Points from January 2015 | ||
| Passengers | % Change y-o-y | |
| 1. United Airlines | 2,359,669 | 1.0% |
| 2. American Airlines | 2,351,702 | -3.6% |
| 3. Delta Air Lines | 1,916,868 | 2.9% |
| 4. JetBlue | 595,861 | 15.4% |
| 5. British Airways | 531,758 | 1.3% |
| 6. West Jet | 438,385 | 2.3% |
| 7. Lufthansa | 401,528 | 6.0% |
| 8. Air Canada (rouge) | 337,616 | 44.3% |
| 9. AeroMexico | 320,226 | 1.5% |
| 10. Emirates | 308,754 | 26.2% |
In early April NTTO will publish the January 2016 U.S. Citizen Outbound, all mode travel, after the aggregate departure data is received from Stats Canada and Banco de Mexico. (U.S. Citizen outbound is a component in the estimation of U.S. travel imports. For 2015 through December see: http://travel.trade.gov/view/
A description of the “I-92” program: http://travel.trade.gov/
