WASHINGTON - United States scheduled passenger airlines employed 385,619 workers in May 2014, 1.1 percent more than in May 2013, the U.S. Department of Transportation's (DoT) Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported. May was the sixth consecutive month that full-time equivalent (FTE) employment for U.S. scheduled passenger airlines was higher than the same month of the previous year.
The May 2014 FTE total for scheduled passenger airlines was 4,247 more than in May 2013 and the highest monthly total since September 2012. Scheduled passenger airline categories include network, low-cost, regional and other airlines. Historical employment data can be found on the BTS web site.
The five network airlines that collectively employ two-thirds of the scheduled passenger airline FTEs reported 0.5 percent more FTEs in May 2014 than in May 2013. Alaska Airlines, US Airways, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines increased FTEs from May 2013 while United Airlines reduced FTEs. Network airlines 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.
Of the six low-cost carriers, four - Allegiant Airlines, Spirit Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Virgin America - reported an increase in FTEs from May 2013 while two - Frontier Airlines and Southwest Airlines - reported a decline. Low-cost airlines operate under a low-cost business model, with infrastructure and aircraft operating costs below the overall industry average.
Among the 13 regional carriers, four carriers reported reduced employment levels in May compared to the previous year: Chautauqua Airlines, Endeavor Airlines, Envoy Air and Shuttle America. The others reported increases. Regional carriers typically provide service from small cities, using primarily regional jets to support the network carriers' hub and spoke systems.
The five network airlines employed 66.8 percent of the total number of FTEs employed by all scheduled passenger airlines in May, the six low-cost carriers employed 18.4 percent and the 13 regional carriers employed 13.1 percent. The three airlines with the most FTEs in May - United, Delta and American - employed 56.0 percent of the month's total passenger airline FTEs. These three airlines carried 40.3 percent of total passengers traveling on U.S. airlines in April, the most recent month available. See Air Traffic press releases.
United employed the most FTEs (80,500) in May among the network airlines, Southwest employed the most FTEs (45,342) among low-cost airlines, and Envoy employed the most FTEs (10,813) among regional airlines. Four of the top five employers in the industry are network airlines.
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