Commercial aviation helps drive more than 10M American jobs and 5 cents of every dollar of U.S. GDP
Commercial aviation drives more than $1 trillion per year in economic activity
In 2012, U.S. airlines moved more than 48,000 tons of cargo per day
In 2012, the value of a kilogram of U.S. merchandise exported by air averaged 121 times the value exported by sea
For every 100 airline jobs, some 360 are supported outside of the airline industry
Federal taxes constitute $61 – or 20% – of the price of a typical $300 domestic round-trip ticket
In 2011, U.S. airlines carried 16 percent more passengers and cargo using 10 percent less fuel than in 2000
Domestically, airlines drive 5% of economic activity but account for 2% of man-made GHG emissions
From 2000-2011, airlines reduced GHG emissions by 11% while transporting 16% more passengers and cargo
From 1975-2011, U.S. airlines and their partners reduced significant noise exposure by 99%
Commercial air travel is the safest form of intercity transportation in the United States
In the most recent decade, scheduled air service on U.S. airlines was seven times safer than in the 1970s
From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines improved the on-time arrival rate from 72.6% to 81.9%
From 2000-2012, U.S. airlines reduced the flight cancellation rate sharply from 3.30% to 1.29%
Airfares are a bargain: From 2000-2012, U.S. CPI rose 33% while average domestic fare rose just 13%
Adjusted for inflation, the average round-trip domestic airfare fell 15% from 2000
2007 domestic flight delays cost the United States approximately $31 billion
In 2012, the value of U.S. merchandise exported by air reached an all-time high of $427B
In 2012, U.S. exports of air-travel services reached an all-time high of $39.5B, driving a $5.1B trade surplus
In 2012, U.S. passenger and cargo airlines spent more than $50B on fuel, averaging 36% of operating expenses
In 2012, U.S. airlines posted the lowest annual rate of mishandled baggage ever recorded
FAA projects U.S. air travel demand to top 1 billion passengers in 2027
In 2012, US airlines flew 83.4 million passengers in scheduled international service - a record high
In 2012, the total value of merchandise exported from or imported to the United States by air exceeded $927 billion
In 2012, 7.15 teragrams of merchandise was exported from or imported to the United States by air

Safety & Operations - Safety

>> Safety

Safety is the foundation on which our industry was built and remains our number one priority. Airlines work collaboratively with the FAA, the NTSB, our employees and labor groups and others to ensure the safety of passengers and crew members. Today, the U.S. airline industry is the largest and safest in the world, the result of rigorous data-driven collaboration and the gold standard against which other nations are measured. In this section, you will find information regarding important airline safety initiatives.

Safety Policy Paper
Safety is the number-one priority of America’s airlines, and air travel continues to be the world’s safest mode of transportation.

The Work of the Safety Council

The Airlines For America (A4A) Safety Council comprises senior safety leaders from 15 of the nation’s largest airlines.

Runway Safety
The aviation community for years has been working hard to continuously improve runway safety. A4A represents its member airlines at the Runway Safety Council, a joint effort between the FAA and the aviation industry.

Line Operations Safety Assessments (LOSA)
LOSA has been developed through the collaborative efforts of academia, the aviation industry and government.

Safety and Bird Strike Information
Bird strike task force/safety related information.

Facts About Cabin Air

The air onboard a commercial aircraft is cleaner than that in most public buildings. See more facts about cabin air.

Aviation Safety Information Analysis and Sharing (ASIAS)
The Aviation Safety Information Sharing (ASIAS) System enables sharing, integration, analysis and utilization of safety critical information for the prevention of high risk incidents and accidents.

OSHA Airline Ground Safety Alliance

A4A, through an alliance with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), works to enhance ramp vehicular safety by developing prevention strategies to protect employees operating aviation ground-support equipment such as tugs and belt loaders used to service aircraft at the gate.

A4A Promotes Paul McGraw to Vice President, Operations and Safety and Laura McKee to Vice President, Airline Services (5/8/2013)
A4A announced two promotions in the Safety, Security and Operations Division, naming Paul McGraw as Vice President, Operations and Safety and Laura McKee as Vice President, Airline Services.

A4A Says 2013 Airline Quality Rating Report Misses Key Customer Points (4/8/2013)
A4A says the 2013 Airline Quality Rating report by researchers at Wichita State University and Purdue University misses some key points.

A4A Says Senate-Passed Budget Hikes TSA Passenger Tax, Adds Insult to Injury for Airlines and Customers (3/23/2013)
A4A expressed strong opposition to a provision within the Senate-passed budget resolution, which immediately doubles, and eventually triples the TSA passenger security tax.

A4A Opposes TSA Tax Hike, Calling it a Lose-Lose for Passengers, Airlines and the Economy (3/20/2013)
A4A supported calls for efficiency improvements within the TSA, while strongly urging House Republicans not to punish passengers, shippers and airlines by doubling the TSA passenger security tax in their budget proposal.

Travelers Pay for System, Let It Work (3/19/2013)
A4A President and CEO Nicholas Calio responds to the National Journal Transportation Blog, "It's a Sin to Fly."

A4A Names Safety Expert Mark Millam Managing Director for Safety (2/21/2013)
A4A named Mark Millam as Managing Director for Safety. Millam joins A4A from Compass Airlines, where he was director of safety and compliance and responsible for implementing the Federal Aviation Administration Safety Management System pilot program.

Annual A4A NDT Forum (2/12/2013)
56th Annual A4A NDT Forum

A4A Rejects New Legislative Proposal to Change FAA Pilot Rules (1/7/2013)
A4A reaffirmed its support for the new FAA pilot duty and rest times rule and urged Congress to reject recently introduced legislation to extend those rules beyond passenger airlines to all-cargo carriers.

A4A Commends Senate Confirmation of Michael P. Huerta as Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (1/1/2013)
A4A applauded the U.S. Senate’s confirmation of Michael P. Huerta as Federal Aviation Administration Administrator.

A4A Honors Dr. Alfred Broz and Siemens Power Generation at the NDT Forum (10/4/2012)
A4A honored Dr. Alfred Broz and co-presented a team led by Siemens Power Generation with the “Better Way Award” at the recent A4A NDT Forum.

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Safety is the number one priority for our airlines.

What the Experts Say:

“I ride on airlines every week, my family rides on the airlines with great frequency, it's the safest mode of transportation out there. So when we look at it -- and the safety professionals, those of us that are involved in aviation safety, we're looking at this data for trends all the time, and the trends have gotten better.”

John Cox, Retired U.S. Airways Pilot and “Ask the Captain” columnist, USA Today

The Diane Rehm Show

08/07/2012