Travel intelligence company Airlines Reporting Corp. (ARC) has released data showing ARC-accredited travel agency air ticket sales totaling $7.3 billion in August 2022, a 127 percent year-over-year increase. The average round-trip U.S. air travel ticket price declined for the third-straight month, coming in at $526. This average ticket price is a 5 percent decrease from July 2022, but a 32 percent increase year over year.
Month over month, August 2022 results showed that total sales increased 6 percent; total passenger trips increased 9 percent; U.S. domestic trips increased 11 percent; and international trips increased 5 percent.
“Travelers responded to declining airfares by purchasing air travel tickets at a rate we typically don’t see this time of year,” said Steve Solomon, chief commercial officer at ARC. “Leisure air travel ticket sales were above pre-pandemic levels for the entire month of August, while online travel agencies and corporate-focused travel agencies showed minor gains.”
Total passenger trips settled by ARC in August 2022 increased 74 percent year over year from 15.2 million to 21.7 million. U.S. domestic trips increased 30 percent year over year to 14.2 million, and international trips increased 74 percent to 7.4 million over the same period. Electronic Miscellaneous Documents (EMD) sales increased 116 percent year over year to $13,755,346. EMD transactions increased 92 percent to 248,821 over the same period.
The findings are based on monthly sales data ending August 31, 2022, from 10,642 U.S. retail and corporate travel agency locations, satellite ticket printing offices and online travel agencies. These results exclude sales of tickets purchased directly from airlines. The average ticket price (USD) is for a round-trip ticket settled through ARC for an itinerary that included only U.S. domestic travel.
Passenger trips include the total number of passengers taking a trip from one airport to another using direct or connecting flights. Newly issued trips are added, and refunded trips are deducted to provide a net view of traveling passengers. U.S. domestic passenger trips include the total number settled through ARC where the itinerary is wholly within the U.S.
International passenger trips include the total number settled through ARC where some or all the travel occurs to airports outside the U.S. or originates outside the United States. Total sales are equal to the total amount paid for a ticket, including taxes and fees.
For more details, visit arccorp.com.
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