BTS 26-35

This release is published on a fixed schedule as required by the Office of Management and Budget, and statistics in this release may be revised when inputs to the statistics are corrected or updated. Data on the program page of this website are the most up-to-date and complete.

Note: In June 2024, FedEx Ground and FedEx Services merged with FedEx Express to form Federal Express Corporation. Consequently, carrier FX experienced a significant increase in employee count, thereby increasing the total number of employees within the industry.

May 2024 Federal Express numbers are 233,739, while Federal Express Corporation June 2024 numbers are 432,127.

U.S. Airlines: Total Number of Employees (Full-Time and Part-Time) 

U.S. airline industry (passenger and cargo airlines combined) employment decreased to 1,026,583 workers in February 2026, 2,250 (0.22%) fewer workers than in January 2026 (1,028,833).

U.S. scheduled-service passenger airlines employed 555,411 workers in February 2026, or 54% of the industry-wide total. Passenger airlines gained 2,729 employees in February 2026. Delta Air Lines Inc. led scheduled passenger carriers, adding 745 employees; United Air Lines Inc. added 596, and American Airlines Inc. added 512.

U.S. cargo airlines employed 466,965 workers in February 2026, or 46% of the industry-wide total. Cargo carriers lost 4,941 employees in February. FedEx, the leading air cargo employer, decreased employment by 4,915 jobs.

     See FedEx note for discontinuity in May 2024.
 

Scheduled passenger airlines gained 2,440 full-time equivalents in February 2026 

U.S. Airline Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs)

BTS calculates FTEs by dividing the number of part-time employees by 2 and adding that figure to the number of full-time employees. The February 2026 industry-wide numbers include 754,091 full-time and 272,492 part-time workers for a total of 890,337 FTEs, a decrease from January of 830 FTEs (0.09%).

The 25 U.S. scheduled passenger airlines reporting data for February 2026 employed 525,637 FTEs, 2,440 FTEs (0.47%) more than in January 2026. Data by passenger carrier category can be found in the accompanying tables.

U.S. cargo airlines employed 360,580 FTEs in February 2026, down 3,228 FTEs (0.89%) from January 2026.

Reporting Notes

Data is compiled from monthly reports filed with BTS by commercial air carriers as of April 14, 2026. Additional airline employment data and previous releases can be found on the BTS website. The month-to-month numbers are not seasonally adjusted.

Passenger, cargo, and charter airlines that operate at least one aircraft that has more than 60 seats or the capacity to carry a payload of passengers, cargo, and fuel weighing more than 18,000 pounds must report monthly employment statistics. Regulations require U.S. airlines to report employment numbers for employees who worked or received pay for any part of the pay period(s) ending nearest the 15th day of the month.

See the tables that accompany this release on the BTS website for detailed data (Tables 1-15) and industry summary monthly data since 1990. Additional individual airline numbers are available on the BTS airline employment web page. The web page provides full-time and part-time employment numbers by carrier by month from 1990 through January 2026.

Missing Carrier: Scott Aviation (3EQ)

The next update for U.S. airline employment is scheduled for Thursday, May 14, 2026.

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