Air Ticket Sales by U.S. Travel Agencies Running 3.77 Percent ahead of Last Year

ARC, the financial settlement link between airlines and travel sellers, reported today that the consolidated dollar value of airline tickets sold by U.S.-based travel agencies increased 3.77 percent year-over-year in the first three quarters of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011, and 10.4 percent over the same period in 2010. From January through September 2012, ticket sales totaled $66.6 billion, compared to $64.2 billion in 2011, and $60.3 billion in 2010.

Year-to-date passenger segments for the first nine months of 2012 decreased by .02 percent – at 283.2 million segments, compared to 283.3 million in 2011 - while reflecting a .02 percent decrease from the same period in 2010.

Ticket transactions between January and September 2012 also decreased somewhat by 0.40 percent over the same period in 2011, while down by 2.3 percent compared to the same period in 2010.

ARC powers the U.S.-based travel network with premier business solutions, travel agency accreditation services, process and financial management tools, and powerful data and analytics.

Nearly 16,000 travel agencies and 190 airlines use ARC's settlement services, which in 2011 totaled more than $82 billion. As the industry's gold standard of accreditation, ARC allows participating agencies and carriers to focus on what's important – increasing their revenue. Established in 1984, ARC is headquartered in Arlington, Va.