Low Cost Carriers Aiding US Recovery (US Media)

Although domestic flights in the United States have not yet rebounded to pre-9/11 frequencies, the airline industry is showing signs of recovery partially as a result of the growing low-cost carrier segment, according to OAG, the world’s leading source of independent flight schedule information.

In the OAG Quarterly Report on Global Airline Schedules, OAG finds that the U.S. low cost carrier segment is operating with 5% more flights than in September 2001. Cincinnati, Chicago Midway and Salt Lake City’s airports, which all cater to the low-cost carrier segment, are operating above pre-9/11 frequencies.

“The low-cost sector has continued to perform strongly which has resulted in supporting the industry growth as a whole,” said Joseph F. Laughlin, vice president, OAG data - Americas.

Worldwide, flight schedules show no change over 2002 frequencies, but indicate considerable recovery from the Iraq war and SARS virus, which both contributed to a significant drop in schedules last quarter. Worldwide, schedules show almost a 3% increase over June of this year.

“The OAG Quarterly Report shows that the airline industry is showing signs of recovery following the catalog of events of the last couple of years,” said Joseph F. Laughlin, vice president, OAG data, Americas. “Recent history indicates that schedules on a global basis have been reduced. These latest figures indicate the industry may at last have turned in a positive direction.”

Other highlights include:

• SARS recovery: Asia-Pacific has shown significant recovery from the SARS crisis, recording a +10% growth year on year on flights to and from the region. China has seen a +21% growth in internal flights and flights to and from China are down just –3% year on year, compared to a -45% drop reported 3 months ago.
• War in Iraq: The Middle East is also showing healthy growth of +10% year on yearon flights to and from the region. Nearly 500 flights have been added compared with September 2002.
• Continued growth overseas: The UK market continues to perform strongly with flights to and from the UK up +6% year on year.This follows the +4% increase year on year shown in the June Quarterly Report when the UK was one of the few areas to maintain growth, largely driven by its strong low-cost sector.

About the OAG Quarterly Report on Global Airline Schedules:

This is the fourth OAG quarterly report on global airline schedules, developed to provide a comprehensive snapshot of the current state of the air travel industry. The data used in the report is taken from the OAG schedules database, the scale and quality of which is unmatched. Recognised for its accuracy, the OAG database is constantly updated and holds data on more than 930 airlines and over 1.5 million flight sectors.

The report identifies and compares the number of scheduled flights by region, on key routes and to and from major airports, for a particular week from year to year. The reports are published in March, June, September and December.