Travel Agent Air Ticket Sales Rise 6 Percent in September

Travel Agent Air Ticket Sales Rise 6 Percent in September
By James Shillinglaw

ARC, the settlement link between airlines and U.S. travel agents, said the dollar value of airline tickets sold in September by U.S.-based travel agencies increased 6.43 percent in the first nine months of 2011 compared to the same period in 2010. January through September 2011 ticket sales totaled $64.2 billion, compared to $60.3 billion in 2010, and $50.1 billion in 2009.

For September alone, ARC reported $6.978 billion in total sales, up 6.13 percent from the same month a year ago. Total transactions for the month were down 2.71 percent to 12.1 million. Domestic fares for September were up 6.59 percent to $3.073 billion, while international fares were up 2.58 percent to $2.756 billion.

Year-to-date passenger segments for the first nine months of 2011 fell 2.5 percent -- to 283.1 million segments -- compared to 290.2 million in 2010, but were up 4 percent over the same period in 2009.

Ticket transactions for January through September 2011 were down just 1.96 percent compared to the same period in 2010, while they were up 6 percent over the same period in 2009. As of September 2011, there were 14,266 accredited retail travel locations in the U.S., according to ARC.