October 2020 U.S. Airline Traffic Data
Release Number: BTS 06-21
U.S. airlines carried 29.4 million systemwide (domestic and international) scheduled service passengers in October 2020, seasonally-adjusted, according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS), up 8.4% from September.
BTS reported 27.2 million domestic passengers and 2.2 million international passengers on U.S. airlines flights in October.
Figure 1. Monthly Passengers on U.S. Scheduled Airlines (Domestic + International), Seasonally Adjusted, October 2017 - October 2020
| Passengers in millions (Seasonally adjusted) | |
|---|---|
| Oct-17 | 71.9 |
| Nov-17 | 72.3 |
| Dec-17 | 72.3 |
| Jan-18 | 72.5 |
| Feb-18 | 73.8 |
| Mar-18 | 73.1 |
| Apr-18 | 73.8 |
| May-18 | 73.7 |
| Jun-18 | 74.4 |
| Jul-18 | 74.4 |
| Aug-18 | 74.3 |
| Sep-18 | 73.9 |
| Oct-18 | 75.0 |
| Nov-18 | 74.8 |
| Dec-18 | 75.8 |
| Jan-19 | 75.0 |
| Feb-19 | 76.0 |
| Mar-19 | 77.1 |
| Apr-19 | 76.6 |
| May-19 | 76.9 |
| Jun-19 | 77.3 |
| Jul-19 | 77.3 |
| Aug-19 | 77.5 |
| Sep-19 | 77.9 |
| Oct-19 | 77.6 |
| Nov-19 | 79.1 |
| Dec-19 | 78.7 |
| Jan-20 | 79.6 |
| Feb-20 | 78.8 |
| Mar-20 | 37.7 |
| Apr-20 | 3.0 |
| May-20 | 8.0 |
| Jun-20 | 15.4 |
| Jul-20 | 21.2 |
| Aug-20 | 23.8 |
| Sep-20 | 27.1 |
| Oct-20 | 29.4 |
U.S. airline traffic reports are filed monthly with BTS. See the tables that accompany this release on the BTS website for summary data since 2016 (Tables 1-24) and complete data since 2000.
Two measures of U.S. airlines passenger enplanements
October seasonally-adjusted
- System-wide enplanements (29.4M) were down 63.1% from the all-time high of 79.6 million reached in January 2020.
- Domestic enplanements (27.2M) were down 61% from the all-time high of 69.8 million reached in January 2020.
- International enplanements (2.16M) were down 77.9% from the all-time high of 9.81 million reached in January 2020.
October unadjusted
- Systemwide enplanements (30.0M) were down 62% from the all-time October high (78.6M) reached in 2019 and up 19% from September 2020 (25.3M).
- Domestic enplanements (28M) were down 60% from the all-time October high (69.9M) reached in 2019 and up 18% from September 2020 (23.9M).
- International enplanements (1.97M) were down 77.3% from the all-time October high (8.7M) reached in 2019 and up 41% from September 2020 (1.4M).
| Seasonally Adjusted | Passengers (in millions) | Previous Month | Previous Year | Three Year Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | 29.4 | 8.4% | -62.1% | -59.1% |
| Unadjusted | Passengers (in millions) | Previous Year | Two Years Previous | Three Years Previous |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | 30.0 | -61.8% | -60.3% | -58.7% |
For data filed through October, see accompanying tables. For the complete database of reported data, see Traffic. For an explanation of BTS’ seasonal adjustment methodology, see Seasonal Adjustment.
Reporting Notes
Data are compiled from monthly reports filed with BTS by commercial U.S. air carriers detailing operations, passenger traffic and freight traffic. This release includes data received by BTS from 63 U.S. carriers as of Jan. 5 for U.S. carrier scheduled civilian operations.
BTS is withholding the scheduled release of estimated U.S. airlines’ traffic data for November and December because the estimates are statistical forecasts based on previous trends. The estimates do not account for the impact of the coronavirus.
See the BTS Airlines and Airports page for additional scheduled service numbers through October for U.S. airlines. International data by origin and destination is available through July.
BTS has scheduled Feb. 11 for the release of data through November.
None of the data are from samples. Measures of statistical significance do not apply to the complete air traffic data.