U.S. Air Travel Hit Record in First Half of 2024

The demand for air travel remains healthy.

Airlines Reporting Corp. (ARC) this week released its numbers from the first half of 2024 and the results show that consumers are still traveling in high numbers, and remain willing to spend to do so.

ARC’s total sales for the first six months of 2024 are up 1% compared to the same period last year, reaching a record $53 billion, the highest half-year period ever reported by ARC. That number comes with a record number of total passenger trips—149 million, up 5% over 2023—and a slightly lower average ticket price—$552, down 1% compared to 2023.

“Travel demand remains strong for both domestic and international trips, with average ticket prices down year over year for the first six months,” said Steve Solomon, chief commercial officer at ARC. “Both corporate and leisure travel spending are experiencing similar growth rates and airlines look to continue this momentum through the end of summer and into the fall.”

Looking at the data, it’s not necessarily all rainbows for the industry. The first half of the year was strong, but June’s total sales were down 6% year-over-year, and 16% month-over-month. But that mostly has to do with a lower average air ticket price (down 5% over June 2023) as total passenger trips were up 2% over June 2023.

ARC’s data follows TSA reporting that it screened 6% more passengers over the second quarter of 2024 than it did during the same period last year. The nine busiest days in its history all occurred so far this year.